Right Way Around
by Casper1990
Summary: Sam never rang the doorbell in Bohemian Rhapsody.
1. Realisations

**THE RIGHT WAY AROUND.**

**A/N: **So this is my first attempt at a story since I've been mooching off everyone else's fics for long enough. Basically I decided that if Sam had not rang the doorbell in Bohemian Rhapsody, then our favourite couple might have worked things out. Or maybe they wouldn't have worked things out. Either way, I think it is time we found out so here's how things could have gone. They need no interruptions for a while to work through anger, betrayal and being horny before a happily ever after scenario becomes an option. I have no idea how this will turn out but I hope as much as you that I come up with a happy ending. Also, thanks to twiztv for this excerpt from the episode and to luvcali76 for encouraging me to write this. (Makes sure you read "November Rain" and "Do You Think It's Alright" – the latter has received a lot of bad reviews for some reason but do not give up on it!)

FORMAN LIVING ROOM.

Hyde is talking in the mike, Kitty is sitting next to him

Hyde: So anyway Forman, ramble on, keep on keeping on, most of all my friend, rock on. Kitty: You know, I never used to understand that hippie-jargon, but ever since my "bathroom-experiment", I'm cool man! (Jackie comes in) Oh, let me just give you two some privacy (she walks off)

Jackie: Hey. Hyde: Hey. Kitty hides in the den, turns on the tape recorder and holds the mike in the air Jackie: Steven I am so sorry about what happened in Chicago. I was alone and I thought I lost you. Hyde: Yeah well, I can see why you thought that. Jackie: Look why didn't you tell me sooner you wanted to get married?

Hyde: Because I wasn't sure I wanted to. And now that I've thought about it, I'm right; I'm not ready to be married yet.

Jackie: Yet? Oh, okay. Kitty (in the mike): Well there you have it Eric, Steven's not ready to get married yet.

Jackie: So, where do we go from here?

Hyde: I don't kn…

Jackie: Do not finish that sentence!(Hyde smirked sheepishly

Hyde: OK, how about… _(looks behind him to see Kitty listening intently) _how about we go somewhere a bit more private?

Jackie: Sure, basement?

Hyde: Since when has that been private? (Jackie couldn't help but smile) What about the Hub?

Jackie just stared at him.

Jackie: You want to have the most important discussion of our relationship at the Hub?

Hyde: Well if, you get lucky I might buy you something shiny.

Jackie laughed and they exited through the door to the kitchen with Hyde behind her, leaving Kitty holding the mike looking exasperated.

Kitty: Now, what the hell am I supposed to do?

Kitty looks around and realises that, for once, nobody is in the house. She sits down on the piano bench, drops her head and sighs, lost.

THE HUB.

Jackie is sitting at the gang's booth by the bathroom, nervously playing with her blouse while she waits for Hyde to bring back some food. He comes over and she smiles weakly. They begin to eat in silence, at first comfortably but after a few minutes Jackie decides to bite the bullet.

Jackie: So, what would you have said if I had waited around for your decision?

Hyde choked on his soda, obviously not expecting things to get so serious so fast. But then again, things had always been that way for the two of them. Still, that didn't make him any more prepared to answer the question. Determined not to make him feel forced into giving her an answer, Jackie decided to give him the time to perfect the classic "Steven Hyde" response that she had come to love and despise.

Jackie: I mean, Michael told me that you were coming to Chicago to propose but now you are telling me that you are not ready to be married, which is fine because…

Hyde: (interrupting, quietly) Jackie.

Jackie: (still rambling) …God knows our relationship isn't in the most stable place at the moment but still I think it's important for us…

Hyde: (a bit louder) Jackie.

Jackie: (still not listening to him) …to be clear about what we want if we are going to move on and not go through anymore…

Hyde: JACKIE, will you shut your pie-hole for two seconds?

Hyde exhaled loudly and Jackie looked returned to fidgeting with her blouse. Hyde immediately looked apologetic for snapping at her because if there was one thing he had come to realise about Jackie Burkhart, it was that he could always count on her to be honest with her feelings.

Hyde: Look, I'm sorry for snapping but you and I don't exactly have the best track record for dealing with our problems. So let's just start slow, OK?

Hyde looked at her pointedly and she slowly nodded.

Jackie: OK.

Hyde: OK.

They were both silent for a moment before…

Jackie: So what exactly would you have done if Michael hadn't been there?

Hyde: Oh, God.

He dropped his head on the table, quickly growing irritated since Jackie wasn't willing to work with him. Jackie could sense his patience was wearing thin but so was hers. It was time they stopped screwing around with things and were completely open before jumping back into a relationship. After all, the last two times they had gotten back together it was because they were lonely and not because they were ready. Jackie would be damned if it was going to happen again

Jackie: I'm sorry Steven but what did you really expect? I love you more than I have ever loved anybody but after all these years, I am still completely clueless about you! We are not going to be able to settle this with a civilised conversation so can we please go somewhere where we can say what has been left unsaid for the last two years? Please?

Jackie stared at him imploringly while Hyde just looked back, blank. He knew she was right but that was what was pissing him off. As much as he liked to think that he had learned the ropes to a relationship, it still troubled him that he could never figure out how to handle a rocky situation. As a result, he was always left feeling vulnerable and this time was no different. Thinking back to "get off my boyfriend" the nurse, Raquel, last Christmas and finally Chicago, it dawned on him that all those things had occurred because he truly didn't trust Jackie. He didn't trust her to let Kelso go. He didn't trust her to pick him when she said she needed time. And he didn't trust that she would stay with him, even if he gave her reason not to. And if they still didn't trust her after everything that they had been through, what kind of chance did they really have of surviving this? With this realisation, he immediately stopped being Steven and reverted back to Hyde.

Hyde: What's the point?

The complete lack of feeling in this question left Jackie speechless. _Did he really just ask "What's the point?"_ Blinded by utter confusion Jackie could barely squeak out a response before Hyde continued;

Hyde: I mean we both know how this will play out. Your pathetic wish for true love and my need for a good fuck will get in the way of common sense. Things will be fun and easy for a while but when life gets in the way we'll give up. 'Cos that's what we do. We give up and I'm done with it.

Hyde's palms were sweating with fear beneath the table, begging her to block out what he was saying and be the one to fight for them again. He just couldn't do it because as much as he wished otherwise, what he said had a gem of truth in it. Throughout their entire relationship they always cracked under pressure. Both were responsible for it although Hyde couldn't deny that he has been the catalyst each and every time, and he would be again which was why he had to see if there was anything left here before letting her back in. "_Please Jackie! Prove to me I can trust you! Prove to me you won't leave me no matter what!" _was screaming in his head over and over again as he prayed she would understand him.

But he realised that his prayer wouldn't be answered as Jackie fell apart before his very eyes. Her mouth opened with only a crack sounding from her throat. She was dying and there was nothing she could do but stare at his mouth. The mouth which she had always relied on to help her see the real him when he had his sunglasses on had now uttered the words she had longed since feared he believed about their relationship. During **the** summer, there had not been a lot of talking but she had gathered that he felt for her what she had felt for him and that had remained throughout their time together. Even when they broke up, she never doubted that he didn't want to be with her so to hear these words was more than heartbreaking. It was stabbing into her soul and tearing her apart. The final blow came when she had understood his point: _"'Cos that's what we do. We give up." _And she believed it.

Jackie: I'm really sorry you feel that way.

Spoken not with aloofness or spite, but with pure serenity, Hyde was at a loss. She was giving up. She, Jackie Burkhart, his girl, his… his, was giving up on them and for some insane reason, he had never been more proud of her.

_SLAP!_

Scratch that, now he had never been more proud of her.

_To be continued?_

**A/N: **That ending kind of wrote itself but believe me when I say that I am one of the truest Jackie/Hyde fans there are and will not screw things over for dramatic effect. This is the first time I have tried to write for any fandom but I promise I will help these two oddballs/characters through their issues if you stick with me. Please give me a review!

Stay safe. ")


	2. Getting Through

**THE RIGHT WAY AROUND.**

Chapter 2 – Getting Through.

**A/N: **I cannot thank you all enough for reviewing! I expected one or 2 but to get 4 within an hour and so many overall was incredible. I won't be able to update more than twice a week because school keeps me busy so I will try to make up for it at the weekend. Thank you again for reviewing and thanks to cheskie as their story title "The Princess and the Burnout Diaries" helped with an analogy in this chapter. Only warning I'll give is for language. Nothing kinky… yet.

THE HUB.

_(Immediately after Jackie slapped Hyde)_

_Eric Forman, Donna Pinciotti, Michael Kelso, Steven Hyde, Jackie Burkhart, and that creepy foreign kid have long been the unofficial patrons of the only worthwhile public hangout in Point Place. So one might think that their latest bit of drama and teen angst was nothing to talk about especially given the fact that this group of misfits switch partners more often than square dancers. Another common event is seeing resident bad boy Steven Hyde and town beauty Jackie Burkhart huddled together in the corner, having yet another frenzied make-out session._

_A slightly less common event is seeing the two of them in a complete state of role reversal as 30 seconds ago, the princess stood up to the rebel and did what every adult who has walked the streets of Point Place in the last 5 years has wanted to do; she slapped the burnout. Now let us return to the drama because it doesn't get much better than this:_

The Hub had been resigned to silence ever since Hyde's trademark accessory smashed to the ground leaving only shattered remains. However neither he nor Jackie was paying attention to a botched pair of sunglasses. They were only focused on each other, both anxious and eager to discover their next move.

Surprisingly enough, Hyde started talking:

Hyde: I guess I deserved that. I mean…

He was cut off by Jackie's outburst of laughter. Thrown by this he wisely kept his mouth shut while Jackie struggled to catch her breath. When she had finally calmed down she just smiled at Hyde, mockingly. She didn't even utter another sound, just turned around and walked to the door, not stopping except to check her reflection in the door.

Hyde had not heard the bathroom door open and didn't realise anybody was next to him until he heard his goofball best friend yell out:

_BURN!_

"_Leave it to Kelso"_ Hyde thought. "Dammit" he muttered, bending down to pick up what was left of his glasses. To Kelso and the gawking crowd, it was understandable that he would be pissed about them being broken into pieces. If only they knew that it wasn't the glasses he cared about being shattered…

PINCIOTTI YARD.

"_Come on, open up you lumberjack!" _Jackie thought as she stood freezing outside her best friend's house. Relenting, Jackie turned around and instinctively walked out to the Forman driveway where she and Hyde would sit by the porch and make-out, or sit on the hood of the El Camino and make-out, or…

Jackie shook her head and told herself that she should be thinking of ways to separate Hyde from his genitalia, not of how he would graze her arm when they stood by the basketball net or how he would bury his nose in her hair and smile when she burned Eric about his scrawny ass…

And there she went again.

"DAMMIT!!!" she yelled, not even caring if she woke up the entire neighbourhood. "What is wrong with me?" she asked to no-one in particular. _Well the love of your life just trivialised your entire relationship into a couple of sentences _ran through her mind but she would not allow herself to wallow over Steven Hyde any longer. Slapping him had been the most liberating feeling in the world and she was expecting to get a bit of a buzz from it. After all, it was rare that she got to maintain a bit of dignity from any situation so one would think the normal reaction would be to spread it around that she had screwed over Point Place's bad boy.

That is well and good in theory but instead of feeling like a queen, Jackie felt like a failure. And not the kind of failure who could fix her life by getting a job or by living in a huge mansion since she had already done both. She felt like the kind of failure who wasn't enough for anybody and would have to be a, yuck, career woman. While Donna might be happy with her newly independent lifestyle, Jackie wasn't built that way and didn't see how it was possible for her to be remotely happy that way. However with Donna being a DJ, Fez being a shampoo boy, Eric going off to teach, Michael being a police officer and he-who-shall-not-be-named managing Grooves, Jackie was suddenly faced with the reality that her life had nothing worth getting up in the morning for. Her old job at the news station in Chicago was long gone and she was past the point of relying on a man to keep her fulfilled so where did that leave her? Right back where she began.

Alone.

THE NEXT DAY – FORMAN KITCHEN.

Red Forman loves two things; a Commie-free world and a kid-free house. With his son on the other side of the world he had made a silent wish that the rest of the freeloaders, who appeared to have taken up residences in his house since a time when his head wasn't so shiny, would take it upon themselves to stay out of his basement. Then, perhaps his fantasy of a game room could become a piece of reality.

Seeing an empty kitchen Red took it upon himself to utter the words he had longed to say for years, "Peace at las-"

"Red! Come quick! That spoiled bitch has mauled by beautiful baby!" came hollering from beneath him. Dropping his head he yelled "Coming dear…" and then muttered "… too bad the loud one never dated Eric. Would have saved my foot a lot of pain."

DONNA'S ROOM.

"Wait, so let me get this straight," Donna spluttered out. "You," she pointed to Jackie, "hit Hyde?" Jackie nodded enthusiastically. "And this is a good thing?"

"Well, duh!" Jackie exclaimed as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Right, duh," Donna said, her eyes furrowed in confusion. She had not moved from her sprawled out position on her bed after being abruptly awakened by a bouncing black haired girl at the crack of dawn. "Wait, what?"

"Ergh!" Jackie groaned from her perched position at the foot of the bed. "I don't know how much clearer I can be. It's not like you have to strain to hear with those big ass clown ears. Steven was being his normal, _delightful_ self and I took it upon myself to dish out a little punishment, _Jackie _style!"

Donna just stared, blankly. "_OK,_ Jackie have you been hitting the Circle solo again? Because we've been through this, Fluffycakes and a Captain and Tennille poster do not count as actual people."

"Why are you not getting how cool this is?" Jackie asked, growing impatient. "It's not like you never wrestled with Eric or pushed him around. How is this any different?"

"Well for one, I only ever did that because Eric brought out the inner-child in me" Donna responded, serenely. "Not because he FREAKIN' TRIVIALISED OUR ENTIRE RELATIONSHIP AFTER I GAVE UP A DREAM JOB TO MAKE UP WITH HIS SORRY ASS!" she exclaimed, giving up on the banter and determined to find out why Jackie was not acting heartbroken. "Why are you not hugging your Donny Osmond doll or watching re-run after re-run of Another World while criticising my outfit between tears? The day Hyde cheated on you we both looked like drag queens." Jackie and Donna both shivered at the memory of Jackie destroying Donna's confidence and the two of them crying while watching Love Story with mascara soaked faces.

"Because Donna, I got to be the bigger person and I got to leave him sitting there looking like a loser. Aren't you always telling me to be independent and not to shave under my arms like your feminist freaks of friends?" Jackie shrugged off Donna's glare. "Look, the entire time I was with Michael I got humiliated and I know that you all pitied me and thought of me as a loser…

"Jackie, no." Donna forcefully interjected.

But Jackie waved her off. "…and you were all right. I let him walk all over me because I was terrified of being alone. As much as I like to think I've changed, I let Steven do exactly the same thing to me for exactly the same reason. I'm done with it and I know that I'm never going to be strong enough to be in a relationship unless I stop whining about things. I can move past Steven and be happy by myself for once."

Donna couldn't help but smile with admiration for her friend. She was really tougher than they had all thought and she deserved a lot of credit for becoming the confident young woman that sat in front of her. "I'm really proud of you Jackie," she said honestly. "You are without a doubt the most stubborn person on this planet, except of course for Hy…" Jackie's eyes narrowed. "After you-know-who." Jackie grinned.

"Thank you Donna. It really means a lot that you're there for me. I know it's been really hard with Eric leaving…"

Donna interjected, "Hey, forget about me. I can't believe I'm going to encourage this in you but be selfish for today. Actually I think I'm going to take my own advice so get out so I can go back to sleep."

Jackie chuckled.

"Later, lumberjack."

"Later, midget."

Jackie walked out, closed Donna's door and leaned against the wall, defeated. _What's wrong with you Donna? _Jackie thought, _can't you see that this is killing me?_

Plastering a smile back on, Jackie flounced down the stairs and strode across the kitchen muttering a "Hi" to Bob, and then opened the door, coming face to face with the last person she had expected to see…

_To be continued…_

**A/N: **Who could it be??? Thanks again to all who reviewed and I promise there will be some Jackie and Hyde interaction soon. Just need a breather from the drama for a bit. I'm a bit unsure about the bit with Red and had intended it to be longer than it was but I figure it's not necessary to hear Red's reaction to Jackie hitting Hyde just yet. R&R, please.

Stay safe.


	3. What I have to say

**THE RIGHT WAY AROUND.**

Chapter 3 – My Life.

**A/N:** I cannot thank you all enough for your reviews because they are keeping me motivated to write and to make this as good as possible. I've no ending planned in the near future but I will try to keep chapters fairly long so that may change. For now, just stick with me. Thanks.

FORMAN KITCHEN

"Oh, my god! Oh, my god!" Kitty rambled running through the sliding door and collapsing onto the counter, breathless. Red and Hyde looked up from their breakfast to glance at each other, before sighing and turning around to show that Kitty had their full attention. Red's anyway, since Hyde was having trouble thinking past the throbbing pain on his nose caused by his favourite little pixie.

"Kitty, what's going on? If this is because Bob has the same Shirley Temple figurines as you, then you can save your breath… or lack of it. I already made him cry because of it."

"No, this is about the fact that I just saw Jack Burkhart talking to Jackie and he said that he got parole so h- wait, Bob freakin Pinciotti has the same Shirley figurines as me? That bastard salesman said they were one of a kind!" With this Kitty stormed out of the kitchen, then came back in to grab her emergency wine before rushing out again.

"Damn woman, now I have to make Bob cry again. Wait, why am I complaining about that?" Red chuckled as he left the kitchen. However a menopausal woman and an overly-sensitive neighbour were not plaguing Hyde's thoughts. As soon as he heard the words "Jack" and "Burkhart" in the same sentence his whole stomach lurched and he had been in the same state of utter confusion ever since. Finally breaking his trance, Hyde nearly overturned the kitchen table in a mad dash to see what was going on in his driveway. Stopping at the path connecting the two houses, Hyde could just about make out the silhouettes of a man he had quite often considered doing bodily harm to and a woman who had grown on him quite a bit. _"Sure, she has just grown on you. Just admit it, you looooov-" _Hyde shook his head to stop the booming voice that had been invading his every thought ever since Jackie had stormed out of the Hub, leaving him with nothing except a bruised ego. "_Yeah, and a broken heart, dumbass."_

"Oh, screw this," Hyde muttered and turned around to go back inside the Formans' house. It wasn't like Jackie was his concern any more and if by some chance she wanted to talk to him, not that he wanted her to, then so be it. He was done being her knight in shimmering armour. _"Oh yeah? If that's so, then how come you won't stop whining about her? Zen left you a long time ago buddy."_

"Shut the hell up! If I have really lost my Zen, then how about you and I go looking for it? What's that? You've got nothing else you wanna say? No more pre-school taunts?" Hyde was quiet for a moment before finishing, "Didn't think so." With that he stalked down to the basement determined to get more wasted than he had in his entire life. It's not like he has a job to go to…

"Crap! Leo!

PINCIOTTI BACK YARD

_(Jackie and her dad haven't spoken since they sat down)_

The two of them had moved to sit on the steps, knees barely touching but their bodies facing straight ahead. Jack nervously turned his gaze to his daughter, silently taking in the beautiful woman that sat next to him. She had always been his princess but the haggered expression and sullen gaze made him feel so guilty for not being around for her over the last year.

Jackie, meanwhile had less complex thoughts circling her brain.

_He's back. He's here. My daddy is with me._

It was what she had been longing for since the day Red had driven her home to a media circus of a house where she saw her "mother" calmly talking to an investigator. To a stranger it could have passed at talking but Jackie had the unfortunate pleasure of seeing it as flirting. After all, it was hardly the first time. Thinking back, Jackie remembered the state of dread that was filling the empty pit in her stomach as she advanced towards her mother but before she could get a chance to hazard a guess as to what was going on, a reporter literally shoved a microphone and camera into her face asking how it felt to be the daughter of a mayor-turned-convict.

And that was how Jackie Burkhart found out that her daddy was being taken away from her. And now he was back. No warning, no phone call, no nothing. Just showing up after spending 12 months locked away while his daughter had to sleep on a military cot in her best friend's bedroom and get her heart heartbroken not once, not twice, not three times, or four times, but five times by the same man. And that just made her mad…

"Get away from me," she croaked out, her voice dry from being so quiet for so long. But her father heard her and simply stared at her in a daze.

"Wha-"

"I SAID GET AWAY FROM ME!" Jackie screamed before running into the house and locking the door behind her. Jackie slid to the floor causing a concerned Donna to sit beside her and pull her friend into a fierce hug. Tears coursed down Jackie's face while Donna struggled to sooth her. Bob, who had grown to love Jackie as his own, was in no mood to sympathise with Jack and saw to it that he left them alone until Jackie was ready to face him. After putting up some resistance, Jack agreed to give her some space and left to try to track down any remaining allies in Point Place.

Hours later, after many tears, Jackie had fallen asleep on Donna's bed leaving a very concerned "circle" of friends trying to find a way, any way, of cheering her up.

--- CIRCLE ---

Fez(sobbing): Why, oh why does my beautiful goddess get pooped on by every man that passes her by? WHY, I ask you! (cries)

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: All I know, is that I offered Jackie my hot bod the last time her dad caused trouble, but she turned me down cold man. Instead she went straight for Hyde and you both remember what happened then.

SPIN AROUND THE CIRCLE

Fez & Donna: Yeah…

CUT BACK TO KELSO

Kelso: Thank God, 'cos I've forgotten.

CUT TO DONNA

Donna just shook her head and looked to Fez for help but then realised what she was doing. "Great, my best friend's life is falling apart, and I'm sitting here asking Scooby and Shaggy for help.

DONNA GETS UP AND LEAVES. CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: Man, I'd make a great Scooby. Velma totally has the hots for him.

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: Kelso, you idiot. Velma wants Shaggy! That's why she's so pissy all the time at Scooby, because he gets to spend the whole time trailing that handsome devil.

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: _(shrieks)_ Yeah… well… my Scooby impersonation is way better than yours.

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: _(gasps) _Take that back!

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: Or what?

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: Oh, I really didn't want to do this but you have left me no choice. Now stand up so we can do this right! _(Fez raises his eyes indicating that Kelso has stood. Fez is suddenly nervous)_ Wow, you are really tall. _(narrows his eyes) _But are you man enough to handle this?

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: _(smirks) _Oh, I so am.

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: Then on 3. 1, 2, 3!

_(They both begin howling like dogs)_

GROOVES

Donna walks in and sees Hyde chasing a bunch of hippies out of his office with a broom. After they have run out like little girls, Donna turns back to face Hyde and suddenly sees the dishevelled mess that was once a record shop.

"Hyde, what the hell happened?" Donna asked, stunned.

"_What the hell happened? _Why don't you tell me Donna since I told you to look after the store while I was gone."

"No, you told **Leo**.**"** She answered back like it was the most obvious answer. Upon Hyde's pressing look, Donna finally understood the reality of what she had said. "Oh, you told _Leo_. Yeah I guess we should have checked up on him once in a while, huh?

Hyde just chuckled and picked up the cash register which was filled with cigarette butts and showed it to her. "Gee, ya think?" he said sarcastically. Angered, Hyde walked away and started stuffing things into garbage bags, making it clear that he was in no mood for a chat. However Donna had come here on a mission and if necessary, she would make out with the new guy to get Hyde to agree with her. _Sandy, was it? The new guy's name is something girly like that, _Donna thought.

"Look, I have spent the better part of the day trying to help a certain girl who if I'm correct, left that nasty looking gash on your nose?" Donna pointed at the swollen mark on Hyde's face where his sunglasses had been ripped from the previous night. Hyde just rolled his eyes and continued stuffing garbage. "Don't try that Zen crap on me. I knew you long before "_whatever_" started being you every other word."

"Please, you've got nothing on me."

"Oh really?" Donna taunted, making Hyde suddenly feel very nervous. "Hey, you," she stopped a young guy who looked like an Andy Gibb wannabe. _Hyde must have been high when he hired this guy. _"Sandy, is it?"

"Randy." The young guy replied, checking Donna out in a not-so-subtle manner.

"Right, Randy, whatever. Do you look up to this guy here?" She pointed towards Hyde. Randy nodded so she continued, "You think he's cool and one of the guys?" Randy nodded again. "And you're not just saying this because he's your boss, right?"

Randy shook his head. "No, Hyde said being a suck-up is a dead giveaway that you're not getting any." Hyde smirked, proud of his little gem of wisdom. But the smirk was soon fading from his face.

"Well, how would you feel if you knew he had let his ex-cheerleader girlfriend call him a pet name?" Donna asked, barely controlling her laughter. Hyde made a step towards Donna, warning her.

"Watch it Donna." he said menacingly.

"Uh oh, Hyde's mad. I better not do anything to make him madder because that's never fun. Isn't that right PUDDI- MGOPY!!" Donna was cut off by a giant hand covering her mouth.

"Donna, it's been a delight seeing you but Randy and I have a lot of work to do so what so you say I walk you to your car, hmm?" Hyde asked, in the sweetest voice he could muster. Dragging Donna outside he let her go and glared at her. "This had better be good."

Donna rolled her eyes. "Like I was saying before we were interrupted by Mandy-"

"RANDY!" came hollering from inside Grooves.

Donna groaned. "Like I was saying before we were interrupted by _Randy_, Jackie needs help." Hyde stared blankly. "Her dad is out of prison so…" she ended, hoping Hyde realised what she was asking. He did, but that didn't mean he was going to be any less of a dick.

"So…?" He drawled, the smartass that he was. "OW!" followed after Donna flicked his nose, her tolerance for men running low.

"Shall I continue?" she asked sweetly, cocking her head. Sighing, and dying for an aspirin, Hyde decided to quit his antics and leave before he ended up looking like Pinocchio.

"Fine. I'll talk to her."

"That's all I ask." Donna replied, smiling. Turning around, he walked away from her not realising how close he was standing to the door and walked into it, face first.

"OW! My nose!"

Chuckling to herself, Donna strode to her Dad's car and said to herself, "Man, Kelso is gonna be jealous."

HALLWAY OUTSIDE DONNA'S BEDROOM

For as long as he could remember, Steven Hyde had been coming to the Formans' or the Pinciotti's and they had always felt safe and comfortable. Hell, they were probably the only two places on Earth that he hadn't stolen something from because he had a feeling that he didn't show to many others: respect. The people he cared about lived here and he could never justify taking advantage of what they had given him, regardless of what he said. So why was it that he felt like an intruder, standing a few metres away from a girl he had practically grown up with. While they may have rarely seen eye to eye, to put it lightly, they were always comfortable around each other be it in the basement or in the driveway or in the Hub. And since Hyde was not one to be affected by relationships, he could not grasp why it was so difficult for him to simply knock the door, even if he had spend a bit more time with this girl than anyone else. Like he said, they were just comfortable around each other. Or at least they used to be before… _what was it that made us uncomfortable around each other?_

_---_

_Hyde: Jackie. You wanna talk?_

_Jackie: What would I have to say to you?_

_Hyde: I don't know, how 'bout, um . . . . I'm a crazy, spoiled, whack job and I'm sorry._

_---_

_Hyde: I mean we both know how this will play out. Your pathetic wish for true love and my need for a good fuck will get in the way of common sense. Things will be fun and easy for a while but when life gets in the way we'll give up. 'Cos that's what we do. We give up and I'm done with it._

_---_

_SLAP!_

_---_

_Oh yeah, _Hyde thought, _that's what made us uncomfortable around each other._ Deciding enough is enough, Hyde slapped his cheeks to waken himself up, and without giving himself time tot hink about it, he knocked the door which was keeping him away from Jackie Burkhart.

"_Steven, go away. I'm not in the mood to be burned right now." _Jackie mumbled, barely audible under the duvets that covered her.

Hyde was confused. How had she known it was him?

"_You do that same stupid knock every time so that's how I knew it was you."_

Holy shit, she was reading his mind now! Actually, this worked for him because they didn't do well in face-to-face situations as history, and his nose showed.

"Look Jackie, I won't come in but I am not leaving either so you will have to compromise with me. OK?" Silence. "You know this would be one of those rare cases where I wouldn't mind hearing what you have to say?" He was hoping for a giggle from her but instead he got the door nearly torn off its hinges by a 95lb girl, with eyes saying she was in no laughing mod. Forgetting that they had had no direct contact in a day, Jackie wasted no time in venting herself at the nearest available body. And since that body was Hyde's, he was simply screwed.

"You know what? You're a freak! That's right, I, Jackie Burkhart, called Steven J. Hyde a freak and considering who you are and how you are regarded, I don't think that will alter public opinion of you all that much. You parade around this careless, stoic attitude and claim that nothing is worth anything and nobody is worth your time. Yet here you are: a 19 year old stoner living in a stranger's basement thinking that it is cool to get high everyday and that it is acceptable for a supposedly "grown man" to wear sunglasses because he is a _scared little boy_ that is so terrified of dealing with his own issues and is so bitter with his own life, that he seizes every pathetic worthless opportunity to point out what is wrong with his parents, his friends, his job, the government and anybody else who has ever tried to help him out. So you would think that after witnessing all of that that I would see sense and not pin my entire future on a dumbass with the maturity of a frickin croissant but instead I do and what do I get? This. You, showing up at my door, offering a few charming words and believing that after everything you have put me through that I would somehow feeling like pouring my heart out to you just so I could hear you destroy me with it the next time you have a panic attack. Or the next time you see me sitting with Michael. Or the next time I ask you for some space. Or the next time I tell you that I have to move on with my life. Or the next FRICKIN TIME I SMASH YOUR DISGUSTING, CHEAP, GYPSY-LIKE SUNGLASSES THAT BELONG ON SESAME STREET!!!" Physically spent, Jackie moved back across into Donna's room and before she slammed the door in Hyde's bewildered face said:

"There, now you have heard what I have to say."

_SLAM!_

**A/N: ** Wow, I have a real buzz after writing that lol. Some of my own frustrations came out so forgive me if I was out of character but I really needed it. I'd still love a review, pretty please.

Stay safe.


	4. Help Me to Help You

**THE RIGHT WAY AROUND.**

Chapter 4 – Help Me to Help You.

**A/N:** I am so sorry for taking so long to update but life got in the way and then I had some computer problems and the site wouldn't let me update but I hope this chapter makes up for it. The response has been amazing and I cannot thank you all enough for the support I have received. I really appreciate reading them and it gives me the confidence to write more. I am tempted to write more Circle scenes if I feel the opportunity arise but I don't want to bother if you didn't enjoy the one in Chapter 3. Please let me know what you think. Thanks, and now back to the drama.

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing and after the crap the show spilled out in Season 8, I'm relieved to have nothing to do with the show.

FORMAN BASEMENT (the next morning)

Bursting open with a start, the door leading out to the garden swung against the wall, knocking the record player off its stand and onto the ground. Amongst the wreckage of several Led Zeppelin records and a very worn copy of Sgt. Pepper stood a dark-skinned man with a look that shot daggers at the sole occupant of the basement, the resident Zen master.

"Let me take a wild guess." Hyde started, with the shake of a finger, "You're in a bad mood."

Collecting himself, Fez gave a small, apologetic smile and proceeded to walk over to the man he had idolised for as long as he could remember and lay a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Now Hyde, you have been a dear and loyal friend to me for almost a decade-"

"We've only known each other for like 3 years."

"WELL IT FEELS LIKE LONGER, DAMMIT!" Fez shouted, exasperated. Once again feeling the need to take a deep breath, he continued. "Regardless of our loose timeline, I have grown quite fond of you and have always been willing to share my wisdom with you, especially when it comes to the ladies. Now after my intervention two months ago, I thought that you had seen sense once and for all but I see that this is not the case. Therefore you leave me no choice." By this point, Hyde was looking around the room, half-expecting to see someone jump out of the shower and tell him he was on candid camera. He was broken out of his daze, however, by the surprisingly strong grasp of his foreign friend and was moved against the dryer while Fez dug around in his backpack. After pulling out a bag of M&M's, a Kit Kat, a bag of Oreos, a copy of Playboy, and another bag of M&M's, he at last pulled out what looked like an old pocket watch. Bewildered, and a little unnerved, Hyde thought it best to keep his mouth shut.

Fez turned around to face him and held the pocket watch in front of Hyde's face. "Now, I want you to look deep into the watch until you have cleared your mind." Fez said, in the voice of a carnival hypnotist. Confusing Hyde's normal, blank, pissed off expression for that of deep concentration, Fez felt awed by his newfound ability to control minds. _Oh, this will do wonders for my little men!_ he chuckled to himself. Shaking his head, he reminded himself that he was here for one reason, and for one reason only. Still amazed by Hyde's "concentrated" expression, he continued on, "Now, repeat after me. _I have been an idiot and I must listen to Fez's instructions completely._"

Hyde lost his patience and frogged him on the shoulder.

"Aiiii!" sounded from his friend. Hyde stalked around the couch and put his arms down on the lawn chair, leaning forward.

"Fez, what the hell are you doing with that watch? And why are you trying it on me? It's like waving a commie in front of Red." Hyde shook his head, dumbfounded as to why his friend would willingly risk a beating. Dropping the watch with a dramatic movement, Fez sauntered up to his friend in the most courageous walk he could muster however it looked to Hyde like Fez should be on a toilet.

"I'll tell you what I am doing, shall I? I am trying to play my part in the Jackie and Hyde saga by getting you two to work past your differences. I did it once before and I will be damned if your stupid, yet well-toned body will undo my work because I have already lost Eric and Donna's frenzied make-out sessions." His voice was now bordering on desperation. "I cannot lose yours and Jackie's as well." he finished, his voice breaking.

_Did I screw up in a past life? _Hyde thought to himself. It was the only reason he could come up with about how he had ended up friends with this guy. Laying a hand on his shoulder to calm himself as much as Fez, he said, "Fez, buddy. You gotta understand that Jackie and I are over. For good. Okay?" he asked gently. As icy as Hyde could appear, he had always had a soft spot when it came to Fez and his sensitive emotions. Fez raised his solemn eyes to meet Hyde's before speaking.

"If it's about what Jackie said to you last night, then forget it because she's just upset." Fez tried. However Hyde's eyes, still without protection, darkened and his grip on Fez's shoulder tightened. Fez sensed he had said one thing too many.

"Jackie told you about what happened?"

Fez began to shake nervously. "Um… well… you see she… I was… and it was all… Oh, I'm so sorry Hyde!" He lunged himself into his friend's arms. "Jackie was so sad and I didn't want to come out of the closet or she would think I was spying on her, which okay, normally I would have. But she was so depressed and lonely that I couldn't leave her alone and I thought you would hurt me if I came out when she started yelling at you. Jackie is a _very_ scary woman, Hyde. She must be very controlling in the you-know-where." Fez laughed in his own perverted yet oddly endearing way.

However, Hyde was not amused. He wasn't sure he was even that pissed off. Well, he was a little but what else was knew? Truthfully, he was embarrassed that a 95lb cheerleader could give him such a multi-burn without taking a breath and that she would leave him with nothing to say, and he was even more embarrassed that now there were witnesses. Since he had been so consumed by his own anxiety, Hyde had not noticed that Fez was back to rambling out an apology.

"… but you must know that I have never thought your sunglasses were cheap or belonged with gypsies. In fact, I think they really bring out your eyes and your massive head." Fez gasped. "No, wait! I didn't mean that your head is massive. No, it is perfectly normal head-size and it's something I would even kiss in admiration. Yes! I would actually like to kiss your head." Growing more nervous by the second, Fez leaned into Hyde before getting shoved off by a now extremely pissed off Hyde. "So you don't want me to kiss your head?" Hyde groaned and turned around, storming up the steps outside the basement leaving a very twitchy foreigner behind. Swallowing his terror, Fez spluttered out, "Oh, what a surprise. Mean ol' Hyde is running away!"

Silence.

Fez closed his eyes shut and when he opened them, he was confronted with the stony glare of Hyde's face.

"What did you say to me?" Hyde asked, as if daring Fez to continue. Figuring he couldn't be in more danger of a beating that he already was, Fez bit the bullet and took a deep breath before continuing.

"Like I said," he gulped, "you're running away from me. You don't want to talk about your relationship Jackie and you are being a coward as always." Fez stuck his chin out, showing Hyde that he wasn't afraid of him. Hyde took a step towards Fez, menacingly.

"Look here, Fez. The reason that I walked away from you is that I have spent the better part of the last 12 hours getting bitched at by Jackie and then bitched at by you and if there is any chance of the Point Place murder rate not increasing in the next day, I figure it is best that I don't surround myself with people who are looking to sign their own death certificate." Thinking the conversation was done, Hyde began to leave. But Fez wasn't finished.

"Well… well… if that's true, then how come you ran off to Las Vegas for a month after you and Jackie had a little problem? What, did you just want to admire the architecture at Caesar's Palace?" Fez said with a bit more confidence.

"Kelso was wearing a towel!"

Fez gasped. "Oh, no! He was wearing a towel! Why on earth would someone coming out of a shower do such a thing!" Fez looked patronisingly at Hyde.

"You. Weren't. There." Hyde said, between gritted teeth.

"AND NEITHER WERE YOU!!! Kelso told us all that he saw the Camino speed out of the parking lot while he was running from room to room in the buff! So that meant you were in the room for, what? All of 30 seconds?"

_Boy, I've got some balls today. _Fez thought. _But for the sake of those little gems, I'll wrap this up._

With a sense of defeat in his voice, Fez tried to appeal to Hyde once more. "Just stop being such an idiot." _Great start Fez. Oh, shut up!_ "This whole Zen act was funny once Hyde. Hell, I admired it more than anybody but even I have grown tired.

Hyde looked down, frustrated that he had grown so dependent on his shades. But truthfully, he was sad. Not bitter sad and not pathetic sad. Just sad. For as long as anything had mattered, Jackie and Fez seemed to ignore his shit and have blind faith in him. And now here he was for the second time in two days hearing that he wasn't worth it anymore.

Fez recognised that look. He had seen it when Hyde got Jackie's note that she was leaving for Chicago and he had seen it when Edna came back and skipped out on him with Bud.

"Dammit, Hyde! Stop feeling sorry for yourself! You screwed up, but so what? Jackie's dad is back. Her mom is gone. Her boyfriend broke up with her. She lives alone."

"Then do something about it!" Hyde bit back.

"What do you think I have been doing?" Fez exclaimed. "I'm not cut out for this gut-wrenching misery! You know, I've done all I can so I need to find Kelso before I do something un-Fez like and slap you." Fez cocked his head and took in Hyde's appearance. "On second thought, it looks like someone has beat me to it."

Hyde rolled his eyes and waved Fez off.

30 MINUTES LATER

HYDE'S ROOM

_So I comforted Jackie at the Ski Cabin when Kelso cheated on her, I took her to Junior Prom, I went with her to Sizzler, I taught her Zen, I comforted her again when Kelso cheated on her with Laurie, I went to jail for her, I let her pursue me for months, I went out on a date with her, then I forgot about her, then I started making out with her, then I started dating her, then we had our own mini-dramas for a few months, then I cheated on her, then I got her back, then I pushed her away, then she broke up with me, then I got her back, then she left, then I found her with Kelso, then I went to Vegas, and then I destroyed our relationship with 3 words._

"Great job, buddy," Hyde said to himself, "It's all your fault. Sure, she's not completely innocent, but take a look at what she had to work with." Rolling off his lying position on the cot, Hyde sat up on his bed and wondered what the hell he was doing. He had broken a girl's heart more times than he could even remember but as soon as she, or anyone else stood up to him, he acted like the victim.

_She's the victim._

"I know."

_She's the victim!_

"I know." He said louder.

_SHE'S THE VICTIM!!!_

"I KNOW!" Hyde yelled, but it was only then that he realised she needed saving this time and she needed **him** to show _her_ she could trust him to stay with her no matter what, not the other way around. "So how do I fix it? How do I get her to talk to me if I can't even get in the same room as her?" he asked to anybody that was listening.

And just like that, the light bulb went off.

**A/N: **I'm not thrilled with this chapter because it feels so unrealistic but I will use the excuse that it is fiction so anything can happen. You can see that I am trying to redeem Donna and Fez who both lost my support in Season 8 with how their characters turned out. Hyde needs to suffer a little more lol. I know this is a bit out of character but that's why it's called The Right Way Around. I don't plan on dragging this out because this is only my first story and I want to write a few more for this couple before I attempt something big. Once again, please review!

Stay safe.


	5. Funland

**THE RIGHT WAY AROUND.**

Chapter 5 – Funland.

**A/N:** Here we go again. This story is nearing its end because I don't want to go so far that it's just insane to think that Jackie and Hyde will work through their problems quickly. With such minimal interaction between the couple, I think they will have a lot less things to throw back in each others faces. The reviews for the last chapter were really encouraging because I was feeling really critical of it. I've got sooooooooo much work this weekend but I will try and get another chapter out by Sunday. Thanks for sticking with this. BTW, I apologise in advance to Bewitched fans but the opportunity was too good to pass up. You'll see what I mean…

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing and after the crap the show spilled out in Season 8, I'm relieved to have nothing to do with the show.

FORMAN PORCH

Jackie stood in front of the door, nervously awaiting someone to answer the erratic knock she had made only moments earlier. Just then, the door opened slowly to reveal Red who, upon seeing Jackie, gave a salute.

"It is a rare occasion when I have the honour to greet a true hero. I have fought with some of the bravest men to walk this Earth, but none of them would have had the balls to lay a hand on Steven."

Jackie laughed, still embarrassed by her behaviour. "That's actually why I'm here, Mr. Forman. I wanted to talk to Steven before he does something stupid like run off to Vegas again, but I don't think he wants to see me right now." She smiled, wistfully.

"That's crap." Red said, rolling his eyes. "The boy is a dumbass when it comes to you and that's not gonna stop anytime soon, so come on in before you let all the damn heat out." Still smiling at Red's typical sense of courtesy, Jackie stepped over the threshold and cautiously walked to the kitchen door, peeking in to see who was on the other side. Not seeing a certain curly haired boy, she sighed with relief when she only spotted Donna, Fez, and Kelso, who were engaged in another debate about whether Samantha or Jeanie was the more perfect woman.

"We are not getting into this again!" Donna said, exasperated. "Jeanie is a slave to Major Nelson's commands. And don't even get me started on that outfit. Sam has the right idea. She takes control of her own life, regardless of what her husband says." she smirked, feeling pride for her feminist beliefs.

"Oh please, Sam is a big, blonde whore and you only like her because with that hair, you could pass as one." Jackie sniped, including herself in the conversation. Instead of getting into another catfight with Donna, Jackie was instead greeted with the cheers of 3 voices.

"She's back!" her 3 friends shouted. Laughing, Jackie felt better than she had in over a month now that she was back with her friends and not dealing with any life-changing events. She already had an, up-until-recently, AWOL dad to contend with, as well as the love of her life. _Things were so much easier when I was a rich bitch._ Jackie thought, dreamily.

Kelso was the first to stand up, rushing over to Jackie and eagerly inviting her to sit with them claiming he needed someone to take off the pressure of being the only good looking person in the room.

"In a minute, Michael. I have to talk to Steven first."

"Oh, Hyde's gone. He flew out of here after our mighty Fez gave him something to think about." Kelso said, full of admiration for his friend. Jackie arched her eyebrow, amazed that Hyde had once again gotten trampled by a "softy" of the group.

"Uh uh," she muttered. "Well, in that case let me go down to the basement for a sec and then I'll join you guys. I just have to leave something in Steven's room." Jackie quickly went through the door leading to the steps down to the basement, and re-appeared a minute later. Grabbing a soda from Fez, Jackie sat down at the counter. "So where were we?"

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WILLIAM BARNETT'S OFFICE - MILWAUKEE

"Wait just a second so you can tell me if I have this right." W.B. said disbelievingly to his son. "I entrust you with looking after my store, then you run off to Vegas for a month and as soon as you come back you are looking for the weekend off?"

"Look, I know this isn't exactly great timing but I really need the next couple of days to myself or else things are going to get really messy, really fast. I've gotta find out where I stand with Jackie before I…"

"Jackie?" W.B. said, shocked. "You want me to give you this time off so that you can bring back the girl who once told a customer to get out of the store because they were too ugly to look at?"

"I swear I'll make her work on that." Hyde said, raising his right hand. "But first I kind of have to get her speaking to me again and I can't do that if I'm stuck in Grooves. Please, W.B." Hyde said in what his father could have sworn was a sincere tone.

Relenting, he said "I'll give you tonight and tomorrow off if, and only if, you can find someone to cover for you. We have a Guns 'N Roses shipment coming in tomorrow and it's sure to be crazy at the store."

"Thank you, W.B. I'll find someone, I promise." With that Hyde left and went to the elevator thinking to himself, _Now all I need to do is figure out how the hell I am going to pull this one off..._

_-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

VISTA CRUISER

"Funland?" Jackie groaned. The 4 of them had agreed to get back in touch with their youth now that they were two members short, however Jackie and Donna couldn't remember them ever getting **out** of touch with their youth what with spending their first years as adults how they had spend their entire childhoods; getting high in the basement. "Couldn't we go somewhere where I didn't almost get pawed at by a guy in a doggie costume the last time we were here? It's really not as flattering as you might think."

"Well, I didn't get to go with you guys last time since me and Eric had just broken up." Donna said, solemnly. Realising that she had been a tiny bit more self-involved than usual, Jackie looked sadly at her friend next to her whispering,

"Are you OK being in this car without Eric?" Donna just looked at Jackie with tears felling her eyes. Shaking them away, Donna just nodded in an attempt to reassure her since it was clear to both of them what the real answer. Plus, Kelso and Fez would probably get turned on by the sight of Jackie consoling Donna. Taking the hint, Jackie turned to Kelso and told him that he had better not get lost this time or else he would have to walk the 11 miles back to Point Place without any underwear. Kelso being Kelso, took this to mean that she wanted him to strip for her and proceeded to put an arm around her suggestively, resulting in…

"OW, my eye!" he shrieked.

"You're turning into quite the little badass there." Donna joked.

"Ah, well spending two years of your life with a stoner will do that to a girl." she commented, trying to keep things light. Piling out of the car, the gang paid their admissions and while the boys were acting like it was Christmas, the girls couldn't help but shudder at Wisconsin's lame attempt at a theme park.

"On second thought, I think moping over Eric would be a much better alternative."

"Amen, sister." Donna looked oddly at her. "I watched a lot of Richard Pryor shows in Chicago." Jackie offered as an answer.

FUNLAND - A FEW HOURS LATER

Having just bought a stick of candy floss, the two friends sat on a bench picking at their food like it was some sort of forbidden fruit. Donna turned to her friend and decided to bring up the as yet unmentioned topic of Jackie's relationship with Hyde.

"What's going on with you two, Jackie? I mean you came back from Chicago to work things out with him and, granted he acted like a dick, but I've never seen you so defeated before." Jackie looked up at her, astonished that Donna wasn't as oblivious as she had originally thought. "Yeah, you're not that good of an actress." She smirked.

Sighing, Jackie shared a little bit of what had been going on in her mind for the last few days.

"I just hope something is going on with us, Donna." Sensing her friend's confusion, she elaborated. "I've never doubted that I wanted to be with Steven and it's not like I want to let everything go out of a wounded ego. I'm just so tired of working so hard just to have him tolerate being in the same room as me and I keep saying to myself, 'In all seriousness, why do I put up with him?' And everytime I ask myself, I come back to the same answer of 'It's because I love him.'

Jackie looked at her friend, desperately. "And I know I will let him back in if he wanted me just because I love him. I shouldn't trust Steven, but I do and I shouldn't rely on him, but I do and I'm just so tired of it! I hate myself for getting in this deep but I know I will never regret being with him and I hate myself for yelling at him since I know it hurt him, but I wouldn't take back a word of it even if I could. I just wish I understood him. Then I could stop fearing him." Wiping her eyes, Jackie admonished herself for letting go so much. "God, I'm pathetic. Here you are trying to deal with the fact that you're soulmate is on the other side of the world while I'm babbling about how I spent two years with a guy who I'm terrified of talking to, just because he doesn't trust words since _they can mean anything given the context_." She finished in her best Hyde impression.

Rubbing Jackie's back sympathetically, Donna said, "You know, hearing you talk so deeply makes me wish you had just stayed with Kelso and been a shallow bitch." Jackie burst out laughing at the absurdity of comment, remembering how she had been so infatuated with him and how she had planned every detail of her life with him, down to the purple plates with unicorns at their wedding. "At least with him you were guaranteed a smooth relationship."

"Oh yeah, just picture it Donna! While little Michael Jr. was coming out of me, I could have had his father pushing me off of the bed so he could use the stirrups for the hot new nurse he had picked up." With this, they both erupted into laugher just as Kelso and Fez were approaching. "Actually now that I think about it, Michael would have probably hooked up with Fez at some point." This set the pair off again and the boys stared at them, bewildered at what had Donna and Jackie in such high spirits.

"You better not have brought the stash with you and kept it for yourselves 'cos Fez and I should be getting some."

"Don't worry. If Jackie's dream comes true you two will be getting some from each other 3 times a week." Donna interjected, causing Jackie to grasp her arm to stop herself from collapsing with laughter.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FORMAN DRIVEWAY – 2 HOURS LATER

The Cruiser pulled up to a stop and the four passengers jumped out, walking down to the basement. Upon seeing Hyde, who was looking intently at Jackie, Donna mumbled an excuse before leaving and then coming back in to drag out the two gawking idiots who were waiting for someone to throw the first punch. Now that Jackie and Hyde were alone, Kitty slowly crept down the outside steps and locked the door leading to the basement, and then went back to the kitchen where she locked the other door leading to the basement, sending Hyde a silent 'you're welcome.'

Back in the basement, Jackie had since moved to sit down on the couch, feeling the need to avoid Hyde's piercing gaze.

No such luck.

Pulling his chair up to the far end of the couch where Jackie sat, Hyde looked imploringly at Jackie whose silence came to an abrupt end.

"Did you see it?" she asked, referring to the item she had left in his room that morning.

"Yeah, I did. Thanks for getting me them-"

"Well, it's only fair since I broke the last pair." She said, in her most aloof tone. Hyde chuckled, just content to be in her company again without exchanging heated words.

"Did you read the inscription?" she asked, again attempting to sound disinterested. Hyde nodded, thinking back to how it had felt to see for the first time his new sleek, brown shades with '_PP_' etched along the right side.

"I sorta thought that you would think I'd make fun of it or something." He mumbled, ashamed.

"What? So you could start acting like I meant nothing to you? Like anyone would believe that." Hyde chuckled again at her pride but also at the fact that it sounded like something he would do.

Struggling to find the words to start off his plea to her, his situation quickly changed to having no words whatsoever after hearing the next words out of Jackie's mouth.

"I'm sorry, Steven. I shouldn't have yelled at you and said all those things, especially when I know how much it would have hurt for you to list all my insecurities and to have used them against me. So, I'm sorry." Stunned, Hyde decided to push her a little further.

"And the slap?"

"No, the slap you deserved." she said meeting his eyes for the first time and showing a hint of amusement. Hyde couldn't help but give her a goofy grin; the kind he knew melted her heart. But his goal wasn't to have her turn into a puddle at his feet and to be his willing sex slave, although that wouldn't be the worst outcome, come to think of it.

Jackie meanwhile, was growing more impatient by the second_. Oh screw it_ she thought._ I can be practical when I'm dead._ And with that she pulled Hyde to her and kissed him with everything she had, getting lost in the sensations that simply being near him created in her.

But just as quickly as it had started, it had ended and Jackie pulled away making a very frustrated sound. Dazed and confused, Hyde put his fingers to his mouth, remembering how much he had missed the taste of her strawberry lips. Letting out another sound, Jackie stood up and went over to the door, feeling a sudden need to get away from her ex. Bewildered when it wouldn't open, she tried and tried to get it to move, but it wouldn't budge. Hyde was staring after her, trying to keep himself from smiling. Groaning, Jackie marched up the stairs and Hyde mentally counted down…

_3, 2, 1 Now!_

"Steven J. Hyde, what the hell are you up to?" she ordered from him while marching back down the stairs.

"What? Oh, you mean the locked doors? Yeah, funny story. You're not leaving until we get back together. Soda?" he asked in an innocent tone.

Jackie stared at him blankly.

"Ha-ha, so very not funny. Mr. Forman! Mrs. Forman!" she yelled as loud as she could, forcing Hyde to cover his ears from the sheer noise of her.

"Here's an even funnier story for you. They're the only ones with a key and they're going to be at a car show in Kenosha until tomorrow." Hyde was fully smirking by now. Jackie just cocked her head and smiled, as of just realising something.

"So, you basically dump me and I hit you. Then you're a smartass and I yell at you. Now you have locked yourself in a basement with me with nobody coming to let you out until tomorrow? Steven, whether or not I even consider getting back together with you remains to be seen but whether or not you leave here with all your body parts intact is something I can pretty much guarantee right now." Jackie said maliciously, taking a step towards Hyde. Knowing he couldn't exactly hit back, Hyde inched away from her in an attempt to calm her down.

"Now Jackie, you know you don't want to hurt me or anything. If you had wanted to then you wouldn't have kissed me like that right now, because I gotta say that was one hell of a kiss. I just want to explain to you what has been going on with me and why it is that I got so messed up that that things between us got screwed up. I swear I won't waste your time by shutting off and ignoring you."

Torn between her need to see his balls hanging from the ceiling and her need to hear what he had to say, Jackie just flopped down, signalling that if he was going to talk then he had better get started.

_Crap. Now I have to actually say something._ Hyde thought to himself. He had pretty much expected her to yell, hit, and scream until he told her that he actually had a key to the doors behind the record player but instead she was ready and waiting for him to justify his actions that had been tormenting her since Christmas. And to his surprise, Hyde found himself beginning to speak.

_To be Continued._

**A/N: **So what did you think? I enjoyed writing this one and I think there are some good moments but I'll leave that up to you to decide, lol. Probably another two or three chapters to go, depending on how the talk goes. I'm just taking it one chapter at a time.

Please review and stay safe.


	6. Talking

**THE RIGHT WAY AROUND.**

Chapter 6 – Talking.

**A/N:** This took a little longer to write than I had originally intended so forgive me for not getting this out at the weekend like I had originally said. Couple of thanks to go out here: thanks to tanith75 for reminding me that Guns 'N Roses weren't around in 1979, lol. That was one of my many screw-ups so thanks for pointing it out. Also, thanks to arienette47 for pointing out that I hadn't put Jackie and Hyde through a tremendous amount of angst in this story as it reminded me that there was the entire shit they went through in Season 7 that had to be dealt with. I'm writing this before I write the actual chapter so right now; your guess is as good as mine as to whether they will be soon back together. Little piece of randomness – I was listening to Hands Clean by Alanis Morissette and I could have sworn Jackie was singing those words to Hyde in Season 8. Listen to the lyrics and tell me what you think. Don't be afraid to call me crazy… you wouldn't be the first. OK, I've rambled on long enough. Hope you enjoy!

(P.S. luvcali76 – you're a saint! Love every word of your reviews, lol)

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing and after the crap the show spilled out in Season 8, I'm relieved to have nothing to do with the show.

FORMAN BASEMENT

"You've been a pain in the ass since the day I met you."

Jackie looked at him, incredulously. But Hyde wasn't looking to apologise just yet.

"It's true. You're demanding, shrill, relentless, irritating and you piss me off to no end. But for some reason, I can't seem to get enough of you." Jackie rolled her eyes but Hyde was positive he saw the slightest blush creep up onto her face. Bolstered by this, he decided to keep going while he was on a roll.

"And you know why? It's 'cos you're tough. And you're passionate. And you care." Kneeling on the arm of the couch beside her, he continued, "Hell, it took me two years to realise that last thing about you. Kind of ironic, huh?" he said, somewhat regretfully.

Forgetting her desire to Zen him out, she queried, "What is?" Hyde looked at her, pointedly. Jackie was fully aware of what he was getting at but there was no rule that said she had to make this easy on him. Getting amused by this, Jackie decided to momentarily stop being so aloof and pressed him. "Steven, I really don't know what you're getting at. And if you roll you eyes, you're getting kicked in the nads." she warned.

Covering his lower region, Hyde rolled his eyes while giving her a playful smirk.

_That does it_ Jackie thought. _If he thinks he can hold me captive in this place while he plays about, then he has another thing coming._

"I really don't think you are in the optimum position to screw around, Steven because let's face it. There are **no** witnesses." she said, rising from the couch to lean into him. Given her recent behaviours, remnants of which still remained on his nose, he decided to quit the messing. Standing up, and backing away from her, Hyde took a minute to collect himself and to, erm, rearrange himself after having her lean into him so closely and speak in such a soft tone. A time was, he hated anyone having that kind of effect on him but now he was just tired of not having it.

Meanwhile, Jackie's thoughts were a little less sexual, and a little more focused on determining how to avoid this conversation. She was eager to have it, but on her terms and when she was mentally and physically equipped. To be fair, she hadn't been devoting her thoughts solely to her relationship with Hyde while it was obvious that he had been thinking of nothing but. She was currently going through another low point in her life where she didn't know if she was coming or going, where she didn't know who she could trust and who she couldn't, and where she didn't know how to tell a good decision from a bad one. Between dealing with her dad and now this, Jackie was definitely not in the right frame of mind to work through the most screwed up relationship she had even encountered.

"Hey," Jackie said in realisation. "I'm not ready for this conversation." Hyde stared at her in confusion for a moment before replying,

"What do you mean; you're not ready for this? Jackie, we need to do this or else-"

"No, I want to do this. Really I do." she interjected. "It's just that I want to do this right and not in some half-assed way so I think it's best that we talk when we are both in the right frame of mind." she said, resolutely. Feeling very proud of herself for making her point without rambling and seeming bitchy, Jackie looked at him, expectantly. Hyde however was feeling like a complete fool. And when Steven Hyde felt like a fool, he lashed out to make sure the nearest person felt as bad as he did. Even, if that person was Jackie.

"Well, well. Once again Jackie Bitchart wants to do things her way and when it suits her. Shouldn't be a surprise. After all she let her only two boyfriends get away from her aft-"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Jackie said, not caring about his latest little burn. She wasn't exactly shocked since it had been barely 48 hours since she had told him;

_You, showing up at my door, offering a few charming words and believing that after everything you have put me through that I would somehow feeling like pouring my heart out to you just so I could hear you destroy me with it the next time you have a panic attack._

"Steven, you seem to be missing my point here. I want to talk to you. I really, really do but now is just not the time. It isn't fair to you and it certainly isn't fair to any remaining chance that we have, so can we please just leave this until I can focus on it. Maybe I sound like a bitch but all I know is that we are both going to yell, hurt and yell some more at each other if I stay and try and do this. It's hard enough dealing with how I feel about you when it is just the two of us but I have so much going on in my life right now that I need to get a handle on it before you and I hash things out." Hyde's expression of annoyance and anger had still not changed which Jackie had come to interpret as his stubbornness refusing to let her win; even though he knew she was right. Walking up to him, she laid a gentle touch on his arm and spoke in a low voice, "Thank you for being willing to do this. It means a lot. I'm sorry."

However, her attempt at making a graceful exit came to a halt when she remembered one minor detail. "Um, I forgot that I can't exactly leave." she said, smiling sheepishly. Sighing, he walked behind her and pulled out the spare key from behind the record player that he had hid this morning for a situation like this where she wanted to leave. Or for when the paramedics had to get through after she had done him severe bodily harm. Handing it to her, he merely shook his head and walked back to his room, shutting it silently behind her. After a brief moment of surprise, Jackie was overcome with shame knowing that she had just knocked back this man after he had honestly tried to reach her for the first time in their relationship.

"Damn," she muttered.

FORMAN LIVING ROOM

Red was fixated on the bouncing mass of a woman sitting next to him, eagerly anticipating the outcome of what she had described as "the best damn love story since West Side!" before bursting into tears.

"Kitty," Red moaned. "For Gods sake, knock it off." Whipping her head around to him in a violent twirl, Red cursed himself for making such a rookie mistake.

"Knock it off?" Kitty questioned in a demonic voice. Returning to her normal voice, she continued, "As we speak, Jackie and Steven are discussing their biggest secrets, sharing their deepest fears, and fighting for the greatest love ever to grace this town and you want me to 'knock it off?' I suppose you want Steven to keep everything bottled up to the point where he drives Jackie away again and leaves me with Laurie as my only source of having grandchildren. LAURIE, Red. It simply cannot happen. Oh, you are dead inside, Red Forman!" Kitty said, hysterical by this point.

Clearing his throat, he mumbled, "I just meant that you kept flicking from one channel to the next and it was hurting my eyes." Looking down at the remote in her hand which her finger was nervously tapping on, Kitty broke out into her trademark laugh.

"Well, why didn't you just say so?" Kitty shrieked in laughter. Putting the remote control down on the table, Red found a momentary reprieve before…

"Oh, I can't stand this waiting!" she hollered, startling Red back into awareness. "We have to find out what is going on this instant."

"NO, Kitty! It is none of our business what goes one between Jackie and Steven. If they want to tell us then they can tell us but we are not the kind of people who stick our noses in where it doesn't belong."

"Funny, I was just thinking the same thing about when we invaded Korea." She retorted, causing Red to gasp in surprise.

"Kitty…"

"Hurts, doesn't it?" she said before storming off into the den.

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POINT PLACE COMMUNITY PARK

Jackie finally stopped upon reaching the swing set, settling herself down in a vain attempt to rid her stomach of the butterflies that had been fluttering since she had first laid eyes on this place. She was unsuccessful and decided that swaying back and forth with the way she was feeling was probably not the best idea. Standing, Jackie couldn't fight the feelings of nostalgia that suffocated her.

--------------

_A 7 year old Jackie giggled while being chased by her father around the swing set as her mother lounged on a blanket nearby, taking pictures of the duo in action._

"_Mommy! Mommy! Help! Daddy's chasing me!" yelled Jackie as she dove into her mother's arms in an attempt to escape from her father's playful clutch._

_Laughing, Pam said, "Settle down, you two. Dinner is almost ready."_

"_Aww" Jackie and her father said simultaneously._

"_Which one of you is the kid here?" Pam asked, sarcastically. Jack leaned in closer to her and gave her a slight peck._

"_Don't pretend you don't love it." he said jokingly. Rolling her eyes, Pam gave in and gave her husband a long kiss. Little Jackie made a gagging sound at the sight of her parents kissing. Breaking apart, laughing, her parents turned to face her with smiles covering their faces. "Come here, baby." Jack whispered to his tiny daughter. "You should appreciate this why you can because one day you will be too embarrassed to be seen with your old folks."_

"_Never, Daddy." replied Jackie firmly. Hugging him to her, Jackie made a silent vow that she would never grow up to spend none of her time with her parents._

--------------

Jackie was shaken out of her reverie by the sound of soft footsteps behind her. Turning around, she was greeted with the nervous face of the man she had long ago broken her vow to. Not by choice, though.

"I wasn't sure you would come" Jack said, weakly. His daughter exhaled through her teeth and replied;

"What? And miss the big reunion?" she said with a lump quickly forming in her throat. "Even I'm not that self-centred. And coming from a Burkhart that's saying a lot."

Rubbing his forehead, he said, "Baby, I wanted to talk to you about everything. Everything I did to you and to your mother. What I put you through when I forced you to sleep on a cot in your friend's house instead of in your own bed in your own house. You deserve an explanation, at the very least."

Shaking her head vehemently, Jackie responded, "No, what I deserve is to encounter one person I love who loves me back even more so that I don't end up the shattered one everytime."

Sighing, he replied, "I know you have had boyfriend problems but you…"

"NO!" Jackie yelled. "You are not going to pawn this off on some crush gone badly. You cannot keep deferring everything back to other people. You started this, Dad. Mom, and Michael, and Steven may not have helped but it all started with you. You're the reason I've accepted that nothing means anything." Jackie was struggling for breath by this point; all of her true feelings starting to bubble.

"This isn't you. I know I screwed up but there's no way you are this jaded. You're the eternal optimist." he said, with a slight chuckle.

Giving a bitter laugh she replied, "Yeah, I used to be. I used to believe that falling asleep with a unicorn would somehow substitute falling asleep in the arms of a parent. I used to believe that loving came natural to people, especially those who are supposed to feel it unconditionally. I used to believe that I was the best at everything I did because I didn't compromise who I was just so I would have more real friends. I even used to believe that if I worked hard enough and pushed myself beyond my limits then I would be rewarded. But then all of a sudden, I'm finding out that nobody out there truly loves me. I mean Michael was fond of me. He could rely on me and he loved that I took care of him but he never truly loved me. And Steven, boy you would be so proud of me dad if you could see where I have ended up with him. He doesn't truly love me. Hell, I don't even know if I truly love him anymore because of what happened to us long before we even crossed paths. I love him and I could see a future with him and I know he feels the same way. But it doesn't matter because it hit me recently that my own parents don't truly love me. Once upon a time you did. But not now. Now, you use me to get one up on the other. And when you can't gloat at the other one, you take off and leave me all alone.

"Jackie, no! That's not how it was!" Jack interjected, forcefully.

"So then why did Mom leave? Why did you leave? Why did you leave me! Why did you come back!" cried Jackie who was sobbing her heart out. "Why are you putting me though this? What happened that was so bad that you two couldn't fix it? What happened that we couldn't ever sit on the grass over there and have a picnic? What happened that we couldn't love each other anymore? Daddy, please tell me!" she begged him. "Please tell me how to fix it!" Jack couldn't stand to watch his baby fall apart anymore and buried her in his arms while she held onto him for dear life.

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FORMAN PORCH

The door swung open and Hyde was stunned to find Jackie standing before him with the softest look in her eyes he had ever seen.

"Hi," she offered weakly.

"Hey. I didn't expect to see you so soon. I'm kind of tired so I don't know if now is the time…" he replied groggily.

"No, that's not why I'm here." Jackie looked around suddenly feeling embarrassed. "I just…"

"Do you want to come in?" he asked, sensing she wasn't planning on standing on the porch all night. She smiled softly.

"Yeah, I'd like that." she replied honestly. Stepping back to allow her access, Hyde Jackie sensed his hesitation to speak and opened her mouth.

"I talked to my dad today." Hyde looked at her, surprised. "Well 'talked' isn't completely accurate. Yelled, cried, begged is more like it."

"Yeah, I know." Hyde chuckled softly. And he did know. He had experienced the exact same thing when he saw Bud for the first time in nearly a decade. Still, Hyde didn't know what to say and that was a problem since Jackie always wanted him to have something to say. However he had seen that Jackie wasn't as she had used to be. Now she was sadder, more closed off, almost like… him.

Hyde was brought out of his thoughts by the warm feeling of Jackie's hand on his cheek. "Can I stay here tonight?" she asked, slightly afraid of the answer.

Hyde was a bit taken aback but managed a nod. Leading her down to the basement and into his room, Hyde couldn't help but feel a bit nostalgic to the previous year when Jackie had spent the better part of a month sneaking into his room and cuddling up to him before sneaking out again at dawn. Now, however things were different but strangely similar as once again her parents had driven her back into his arms. Walking to the door of his room, Hyde suddenly caught himself.

"Where do you want to sleep?" he asked. He had been so caught up in the past that he had automatically decided to bring her to his room. Perhaps that would give her the wrong idea. Or depending on your perspective, the right idea.

"Um…" Jackie looked around her feeling embarrassed. She too had assumed she would sleep in Hyde's bed with Hyde and truth be told, she was hoping that would turn out to be the case. But she couldn't go straight out and ask him that. "The couch, I suppose?" Hyde was disappointed but tried not to let it show. He was about to agree when he realised that Jackie needed a friend and nothing more.

"No, no. You can take my bed and I'll sleep on the floor." At the sight of Jackie's raised eyebrows he continued, "I mean we can't risk you breaking another Lego Command Centre." They both laughed and feeling more at ease walked into his room. "Sorry it's such a mess but it's kind of went downhill lately…" he finished lamely. _Since you stopped coming here_ Hyde wanted to say but as per usual, he didn't.

Ten minutes later, Jackie crawled into Hyde's cot after he had gotten some new sheets and a new pillowcase. "We don't need to add any more wood to the fire" was Jackie's ambiguous reason but he went along with it anyway.

Trying to settle, both occupied with similar thoughts of their current situations, they each got up simultaneously and met with Jackie getting ready to get out of the cot and Hyde ready to get off the floor. Locking eyes, Hyde started "Did you want me to…?"

"Would you mind?" Jackie finished. Smiling, he added wood to the fire and lay down beside her in the cot, wrapping his arms around her has he had done frequently so not that long ago, allowing them both to finally find rest, and to drift off.

_To be Continued.._

**A/N: **This seriously didn't pan out as I had thought it would. I just decided that it would be more interesting to blame Jackie's dad for making her so bound and determined to find true love. I think I overdid it by making it too sappy and emotional but it felt right at the time. As always, your opinions whether good/bad are appreciated. They keep me focused.

Stay safe.


	7. Morning After

**THE RIGHT WAY AROUND. **

****

Chapter 7 – Morning After. 

**A/N:** Thank you all for the reviews for the last chapter! They really made me smile and have encouraged me to put everything I've got into this story. This chapter is the one you've been waiting patiently for. Well, at least the beginning of what you have been waiting for lol. Anyway, on with the show!

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing and after the crap the show spilled out in Season 8, I'm relieved to have nothing to do with the show.

HYDE'S ROOM

Stirring from her sleep, Jackie opened her eyes and like a shot, the events of the previous night came running back to her. Breaking down in front of her dad, coming to the Formans' and having Hyde comfort her. Looking around her, Jackie was surprised at how comfortable she was squeezed up along the edge of the cot and how she had had the best sleep of her life following the most emotionally draining night she could remember. Unwilling to face the harsh reality just yet, Jackie tightened Hyde's arm around her waist and intertwined her hand with his before closing her eyes again, just basking in the feeling of being held by the man she loved most and who had proven to her last night that he was capable of seeing past his own wounded pride long enough to still be there when she needed him.

----------

Moving his head slightly, Hyde felt the familiar tickle of her soft, silky hair rubbing against his nose causing him to open his eyes and groan, groggily. _What the hell?_ Hyde thought to himself. Spooned against him with a death grip on his right hand was his ex-girlfriend, and Hyde, amazed by how much he had missed this, couldn't resist from mouthing an enthusiastic _WOOHOO!_ before sending himself into a whirlwind of thoughts.

After a solid 10 minutes of reflection, he glanced at his clock and noticed that it was just before dawn. Sighing to himself, Hyde briefly considered getting up and leaving before having the undoubtedly awkward morning-after talk. Although nothing beyond sleep had happened, he was fully aware that the slightest sound from their throats could be misinterpreted and cause a full blown attack to occur. Still, that talk would happen no matter what, so Hyde gave into temptation and lay his head back down on the mass of curls splayed across his sorry excuse for a pillow, and sighed with contentment

----------

ONE HOUR LATER

Lying in exactly the same position as they had been all night, Jackie and Hyde both laid in deep thought, completely oblivious to the other person being awake. However, this peaceful calm was soon disrupted by the blaring sounds of what Hyde had once described as the anti-Christ.

Shooting up in bed at the sound of ABBA, Jackie and Hyde's heads collided and they both groaned out in pain.

"Jesus, woman! Can't you go five minutes without hitting me these days?" Hyde hollered, rubbing the spot on his forehead where the back of Jackie's skull had impacted moments earlier.

"Um, excuse me. I'm not the one with a golf ball for a head." bit back Jackie. "That 'fro just gives you a bit of height." Climbing out of the cot, Jackie didn't look back at Hyde except to gauge his reaction to current events.

"How about we just go out there and see why Fez is so intent on receiving a beating from me these days?" Hyde offered, in a bid to keep things good between them. He didn't want a blow-up to start because of music. He was already convinced that disco was an instrument of Satan's and didn't need any more proof.

"How do you know it's Fez?" Jackie inquired while throwing on her jacket. He looked at her.

"It's always Fez." Hyde replied.

----------

FORMAN BASEMENT

_Waterloo__! Couldn't escape if I wanted to!  
Waterloo! Knowing my fate is to be with you!  
Waterloo! Finally facing my wa- _

"Just to let you know, Fez," he said between gritted teeth after shortly turning off the record player. "I know a much more entertaining way of killing off brain cells."

"Ha-frickity-ha, Hyde." Fez rolled out sarcastically. "Just because you are a broken hearted shell of a man, does not mean that we- _HOLY HELL! WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?_" Fez screamed upon seeing Jackie emerging from Hyde's room while still fluffing down her hair. "You two are back together and you didn't tell me? Why on earth would you do such a thing? Huh, Jackie?" he said, his voice still a bit to shrill for Hyde's liking.

"We're not back together, Fez." Jackie replied, as if there was nothing unusual about this sight. Upon Hyde's swift glance in her direction, she rephrased, "Well, at least not yet." Focusing on Hyde, she gave him a look that said, "Better?" He said nothing and merely sat down on his chair with his legs resting on the coffee table. Sighing, despite herself, Jackie quickly pulled Fez by the belt and physically dragged him out the door before shutting it, and turning the lock so that they received no more unwelcome interruptions. Turning around to face Hyde, Jackie decided to start with the basics. "Thanks for last night. I know you'll tell me to forget it or something but I just want you to know that I really appreciated you being there especially after how I've been treating you lately." She smiled weakly. Hyde cleared his throat and took his feet of the table.

"It's no problem, Jackie." he said with a quick smile. Jackie pressed him.

"And…?"

Blinking in confusion, he replied, "And…?"

"Well, I was thinking you might say something like, '_Don't worry about it, doll. I've done nothing but taken you for granted for the entire time I have known you so there's nothing wrong with you giving me a tiny taster of it. After all, it's the least I deserve._' Or something to that effect." finished Jackie.

Rolling his eyes, Hyde said, "Oh, don't start this. Yes, I was hardly the perfect boyfriend but you act like I never gave a damn about you.""

"Can you really blame me?" exclaimed Jackie, forgetting her intent to talk this through rationally. "I get that you have problems, Steven, I really do. But that's not my fault and I can't keep getting punished for something that I had no control over! When my parents went away, did I punish you for not knowing what to say to make me feel better?"

"You made me shave my beard off." Hyde reminded her, fighting against everything she said.

"Oh, my mistake! How idiotic of me to confuse emotional scarring with losing a few body hairs." Jackie said in return. Digging into his hair, Hyde groaned in frustration.

"I really can't win with you, can I?" He said, exasperated. "I tell you I don't want a girlfriend, but then I let you become one. I tell you that I don't know if I want to get married at 19, and you break up with me. Then you say you'll give me some time to think it over, but you take off before hearing my answer. Then I'm telling you that I am finally ready to deal with our problems, but you tell me that now isn't the time and that you have other things that are more important. This, from a girl who told me countless times that I was what mattered most to her. And then finally, I let you spend the night in my bed after you barely say two words for me, and the next morning you are ready for all-out war. What the hell do I have to do?" he finished, yelling by this point.

"Deal with it!" Jackie yelled back, sick of him not seeing the big picture. "You keep complaining that I pressured you to into a relationship, but I don't remember you ever looking for a way out. If memory serves, **you** came to Chicago because **you** wanted to have a future with **me**."

"Yeah, and I found you with Kelso!"

"But, you came because you wanted a future with me! Forget what happened when you got there and just remember what it was that you were feeling before you got to my motel room. Just tell me what it was that finally made it click in your head that I was the girl for you. And don't tell me I'm not because I know that I am." Jackie finished in the calmest voice that had sounded in the basement since this argument had began to pick up speed.

Hyde didn't speak and after a while Jackie decided that this was pointless and was about to leave before she heard him get out quickly, "I felt worthless." Bewildered, Jackie cautiously turned back to the man standing before her with terror filling his body.

"What do you…" Jackie began before being cut off by Hyde.

"I felt worthless. The day you left, I mean." Seeing her confused eyes, he continued, "You didn't even stick around to hear my answer. Or to even say goodbye. You just left me with a note. Better than a phone call but still…

Shaking her head with regret, Jackie whispered, "Steven…"

"The one thing you always showed me was that I was worth your time. And, okay, I was passed out in a warehouse that day so understandably that would give you some doubts. But when I got your note it felt… Jackie, it felt like I wasn't worth it anymore in your eyes. And that made me angry. Big shock, there." Jackie wanted to let out a sad laugh but refrained. But Hyde wasn't finished. "And then Eric left, and all of a sudden I've lost someone else." Hyde was really struggling with this but not because it was 'girly' or anything. He just hated knowing that this was the only way to fix his life and he didn't have a choice. And anyone who knew him knew that he liked his choices to be right in front of him at all times. Jackie, however was more surprised at the tender way he referred to Eric. Not 'Forman' as he had always been for Hyde. Eric. For a brief moment, Jackie wished that Hyde could be the emotion-free guy he was when they first met because she knew that he was telling her the truth. Not the abbreviated version like telling her that he loved her and nothing more, or telling her that he wanted to be with her and nothing more. The real truth, and that terrified Jackie.

"And I didn't want the last things I said to you to be 'have a good trip'." Jackie frowned at this, remembering the numbing feeling that comment had left in her gut. "So I decided to go see you. I wasn't even thinking that I would propose or we would even get back together. I just had to see you again. Then on they way there, I got to thinking about stuff and before I knew it, I'm sitting in the parking lot with a ring in my pocket." Jackie's eyes widened at this last comment. She knew that he had been intending on proposing but she had had no idea that he had a ring. In the back of her mind she wondered if he still had it. _Probably threw it in the river after seeing Michael, _Jackie thought. "And then…" his voice cracked.

"And then him." Jackie finished, full of shame. Hyde nodded, unwilling to voice the feeling he had felt when he saw Kelso standing there in a towel proclaiming that he and Jackie were about to have sex. Jackie thought as much and knowing how difficult it had been for him to say the little he already had, she said, "You don't need to tell me how you felt, Steven. I already know." Jackie's words caused Hyde to look at her with a confused expression before he caught on. Shaking his head, he said,

"No, this was different. When I did it, it was to hurt you. You did it, or you were about to, and it had nothing to do with me. I mean, I know I drove you to him. But you wanted comfort and not to hurt me. It was like I didn't matter enough…" he trailed off, feeling like he wasn't making much sense. But he had said enough for Jackie to understand what he was talking about. He was still trying to explain that she made him feel worthless. In some way, it would have been easier if she had been trying to get revenge on him like he had with her instead of dealing with the fact that she didn't feel it was worth it. She didn't feel he was worth it.

"Steven." Jackie started off, softly. Pulling at his chin, she whispered, "Steve, look at me." Meeting her eyes, he stared at her with an exhausted gaze. "I love you." She smiled when he looked at her more intently. "Do you get that? I love you, even though you can be such a jackass." At this, Hyde had to laugh slightly. But he was just waiting on hearing the right words from her. He had to know she understood him before they could start to rebuild their relationship. "The day I left…" Jackie started, knowing this would be difficult to get through. "That day, I was mad. Mad at you, and mad at myself. I never expected you to tell me that you knew without a doubt in your mind that I was your soulmate and that you could never bear the thought of being without me. I haven't thought that way since you went to jail for me." Jackie shuddered, remembering how much she drove him crazy back then with her relentless pursuit of him before deciding that they weren't right for each other, just when he had began to come around to the idea of them. _Timing never was our thing_ Jackie thought.

"Anyway, I was so mad that Eric came to see Donna, even though he was drunk, but you didn't come to see me. Admittedly you were unconscious so that posed a problem, but everybody always saw us as playing second fiddle to Eric and Donna – we were the other couple." Hyde grimaced at hearing how Jackie had taken the jibes they had received to heart. "You should have seen the pity on Donna's face when Eric told us you were passed out in the back of the warehouse. It was humiliating that here I was showing everyone that they were right all along. Not even Jackie Burkhart was enough for big ol' Hyde." Jackie finished, with a sting in her voice. She hated reliving the anger she felt that day and the loneliness she had felt at that motel room and the terror she had felt when he left her room after catching her with Kelso. Thinking back on her conversation with Donna the day before, she had to agree that things were a lot easier when she was just a rich bitch planning her future on Michael Kelso. _Developing layers is a pain_ Jackie said to herself. "Then, when you left I thought, "It's over now. He'll never forgive me after this." And that's all I thought for a month before I had the courage to come back and face you. Then I find you're not even here and I get pissed since it looked like you were off living your life while I moved back to the shabby town I spent years trying to escape. And then we got into that fight at the Hub, and then my dad came back, and I just felt like saying 'Screw it all' because I didn't deserve it. I didn't deserve to go through all this pain when all I ever wanted was to make the people I love happy. So I went a little crazy on you-"

"Yeah, I'm gonna hold that over your head even when we're talking to our fake teeth in the circle." Hyde joked, letting Jackie know that she wasn't fighting a losing battle here. Jackie joined in on the laughs but quickly regained her composure.

"Steven, this still doesn't solve anything. We don't trust each other, at least not completely, and until we do we aren't going to be able to move forward."

"Jackie…" Hyde started, fearing that she might take this the wrong way. "I can't just start trusting you right away after everything that has happened. I'm sorry." Hyde looked down, sure that this would drive her away. Instead of a slammed door he got a chuckle.

"Well, duh! That's why we're here. To start over and to do this right." She said, smiling confidently at him. Hyde nodded blindly before asking,

"Do what right?" Hyde asked, clueless.

"Dating." Jackie informed him.

"Dating?" Hyde exclaimed. "You think the key to trusting each other is in dating?"

Hyde felt sure that Jackie had lost her mind because she was making absolutely no sense to him and spinning his mind in circles. God, he had missed this.

"If memory serves, we never even had a first date. We had a first kiss, a first grope, a first make-out session, a first time-"

"And a second, third and fourth." Hyde reminded her with a cocky voice, remembering the first night they had sex. Blushing, Jackie continued,

"As I was saying." Hyde chuckled. "We did everything but have a normal relationship and I think it's about time we tried that."

Hyde was starting to catch up with her. "So, by dating you mean…"

"Taking me to nice restaurants while complaining about how overpriced the steak is. Kicking out my chair as opposed to pulling it out. Sticking your fingers into my back pocket instead of delicately touching my hand. Screwing me against the washer. You know, romantic stuff." Jackie was fully smiling by now and Hyde couldn't stop himself from moving in to kiss her.

"Ah, ah." Jackie said, pulling away from him. "What did we just talk about?"

"Um," Hyde looked in deep thought, "screwing against the washer, right?" Hyde said, smiling wickedly

Jackie laughed seductively and moved in to brush her lips against his before whispering in his ear, "Nice try." Moving away from him, Jackie smiled to herself upon hearing his frustrating groan and stood over him. Picking up her purse and slinging it over her shoulder, Jackie turned around to pick her jacket off the couch and when she turned around, nearly died upon seeing Hyde down on one knee.

"Oh, my God. Steven…" she whispered.

"Jackie Burkhart. For the longest time I couldn't stand you but I kneel before you with a very important question to ask. Will you… go out with me?" Hyde gave the most sincere smile he could muster without breaking out into laughter.

Jackie, actually feeling choked up, answered, "Why, Steven Hyde, I would be honoured to go out with you."

Hyde smiled, embarrassed at his silly gesture but Jackie was touched by it. Placing a finger on his lips, she whispered, "But you're still not getting a kiss until I see my chair being kicked out from across the table." And with that she left him standing there staring hungrily after her and walked out of the basement, giving her hips an extra sway to remind him that she was holding the cards this time around. Now they were going to do it the right way around.

_To be continued. _

**A/N: ** I had so much fun writing this chapter. It killed me trying to infer so much but I think it was a decent first attempt. Originally this was going to be longer, but I wanted to get the discussion going straight away and I wanted to leave the date until next time so I ran out of story lol. Hope it was a good read. If it was, go crazy and give a review. If you thought it sucked, well you can still review but be gentle. LOL. Next chapter is the date. Or depending on how it goes, the build-up to it. You know these two: there's always something to deal with.

Stay safe.


	8. Friends Will Be Friends

**THE RIGHT WAY AROUND. **

****

Chapter 8 – Friends Will Be Friends & Games Will Be Games. 

**A/N:** You all will never cease to amaze me. Your reviews were incredible and I loved reading them all. I had assumed putting Jackie and Hyde back together would get a positive response but the reaction to their talk was better than I could have imagined so I had to get this next chapter written faster than I had originally intended. OK, I've sucked up long enough so the rest is up to you. Next chapter is the date and this one covers a lot of things building up to it. Happy reading!

(P.S. I decided to write another circle scene where I reveal the truth about Kelso's stupidity lol)

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing and after the crap the show spilled out in Season 8, I'm relieved to have nothing to do with the show.

BURKHART MANSION

"Donna! You're here!" Jackie exclaimed with a smile, throwing open the front door of her house to the sight of her dishevelled friend. Pulling her inside, Jackie shut the door and bounced up the stairs awaiting Donna joining her.

A few minutes later, Donna slowly pushed open the door to Jackie's bedroom and, like a zombie, stumbled over to the bed and planted herself on it. "Took you long enough." Jackie inquired, barely looking up from the Cosmo she had bought an hour earlier. Opening her eyes, she gave a glare to her midget of a friend.

"Well forgive me, Jackie. I'm not used to being called at 8am with you yelling "I'M NOT GONNA BE AN OLD MAID LIKE YOU! I'M NOT GONNA BE AN OLD MAID LIKE YOU!" Jackie rolled her eyes and waved her hand.

"Whatever, Donna. It's not like you were doing anything important like shopping or…" Jackie smelled the area around her and shuddered. "…showering. There is no excuse for lacking in the personal hygiene department, especially on a day like this. And by the way, I thought we had decided you wouldn't do this anymore." Jackie said, pointing to the polyester outfit Donna was wearing."

Looking down, Donna gave a confused expression. "What, wearing clothes?"

"Nooo." Jackie drawled out. "Subjecting me to the sickening sight of your misguided fashion sense. Fabrics are additives, not body lotion. You don't need to smear it all over your body."

"Jackie, what the hell are you talking about?" Donna asked, without a clue.

Groaning, Jackie answered, "What do you think? I'm going out with Steven!" she finished, overcome with happiness. "He got down on one knee and everything."

Shocked, Donna thought for a moment. "You're telling me that you two are back together? And that Hyde did a romantic gesture? What was he, high?" she said sarcastically. Frowning at her friend's lack of enthusiasm, Jackie replied,

"No, he just knew it was the only way to get me back. It all came out after our heart-to-heart."

Donna had to raise a hand to her head. "You had a heart-to-heart with Hyde? Again, I ask. Was he high?" Donna snickered. "OW!" Donna rubbed her arm where Jackie's hand had struck a moment earlier. "What's up with these violent tendencies of yours?"

Trying to explain once more, Jackie started. "Listen carefully to me Donna. Steven comforted me after I had a hard time with my dad, and then early this morning we had a bit talk and everything is fine. I mean not fine, fine. But fine enough that we are finally going to be a real couple and if this date goes well, then I think we will be… well I think we're gonna be fine." She gave a proud smile while Donna tried to count how many times Jackie had used the word 'fine' in that speech.

"So what, you two are just going to forget everything you did to each other?" she asked finally, in a biting tone.

Taken aback, Jackie replied, "No, not forget. Just move past it. We're not going to let things get so out of control again." Jackie was confused when Donna stood up and looked down at Jackie condescendingly.

"Yeah, good luck with that."

"Donna, what is going on with you? Yesterday at Funland you were saying that I should try and work things out with him. Now, what? You think I'm making a mistake?" Jackie was feeling unnerved by Donna's cold attitude.

"I just think you should have taken more time before you jumped back into a relationship. That's all." Donna said, with a sigh.

"You think **I'm** jumping back in?" Jackie asked, with a laugh. "I wasn't the one throwing myself at my ex-boyfriend the second I got dumped by my rebound guy. I also wasn't the one who took back my fiancée the week after he ditched me at my wedding. And I'm sure as hell not the one who will immediately welcome the same guy back with open arms when he returns from the other side of the world after leaving me for a year. Don't presume to think you know any better Donna." Jackie was standing by this point; fuming at the idea that Donna thought she understood her relationship.

"Hey, you have no idea what I have been going through! You've been too busy focusing on Hyde ever since the day you started dating him to understand how hard it is for me to be without Eric." Donna said, using her height to intimidate Jackie. But Jackie was tired of her friend's lame-ass excuses.

"Oh Donna, grow up! You're just pissed because you thought you and Eric were meant to be and were destined to end up together. But now he's gone and you're left feeling rejected and like your life is over. Well, it's not. Because no matter how much you two hurt each other and no matter how long you are apart, you and he always get back together whereas the rest of us have to work through crap after crap just to make it through the next week let alone the rest of our lives. So maybe if you got off your romantic high horse for once, you would notice that the rest of us weren't as lucky as you in finding our perfect soulmate at age 5 and have to be content with getting what we can get. Now, I have worked so hard to get where I am with Steven and I have put up with a lot for our relationship to be taken seriously, so if you can't see how important this date is to me, then you should just leave." Jackie was breathless by this point. She knew that she had gone too far and that Donna didn't deserve to be blown up at like that. But Jackie was beginning to learn that things had to be said straight and not dragged out so that they became more confusing. "I'm sorry, Donna. I just… I didn't mean to yell at you but I…" Jackie sighed. "Can we just talk about this later when we have both cooled off? Please?" Jackie asked, hoping that she hadn't driven a permanent wedge between them.

Donna was feeling hurt by Jackie's comments but didn't have the energy to make things worse so she simply nodded and left.

Jackie sat down on her bed and heard softly through her bedroom door, _"Have a nice time." _in a sincere voice.

----------

FORMAN BASEMENT

"So I hear you and Jackie are back together." Kelso said, smirking.

_Oh, don't start this._ Hyde thought.

"Yep." He answered, in a non-committal tone.

"Just as well," Kelso started. "She'll be needing somebody to keep her warm at night now that the Kelso train isn't letting anybody else aboard. I'm strictly a one-woman man." Hyde looked surprised. "Brooke." Kelso clarified.

Hyde nodded his head repeatedly. "Of course. Commit yourself to one girl who lives in another state and isn't around to catch you cheating on her."

"Pretty smart plan, huh?" Kelso smiled broadly at his 'ingenuity'. Hyde just shook his head and laughed before returning his focus to the TV.

"You know," Hyde said several minutes later, "things are going pretty well right now. Me and Jackie. You and Brooke. I'd say this calls for a celebration, wouldn't you?" Kelso grinned.

"You are reading my freaking mind!"

----------

CIRCLE

Hyde: _(laughing)_ Man, I've missed this. It feels like we never spend anytime together anymore, just us.

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: Yeah! Now it's all about chicks, and kids, and work. We need to get back to our boots.

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: No, man. You mean **roots**. We need to get back to our **roots**.

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: _(distant expression)_ No, I couldn't go back to being a red-head. _(realises what he has said) _NO! I mean… aw, man!

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: _(looking disgusted) _You dye your hair?

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: _(spluttering)_ Well, I… SHUT UP! _(calming down)_ Anyway, I don't think I do it right because I always end up swallowing most of the dye.

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: _(in realisation) _The final piece of the puzzle.

----------

GROOVES

Hyde busied himself around the store in a vain attempt to distract himself from thinking about Jackie. Or more specifically, their date. Even though she had kidded that he should be rude and impolite, Hyde knew it meant a lot to her and he figured he should be making a bit of an attempt to make it special. And since romantic gestures were not in his nature, (he had put his embarrassing date invitation down to something he smoked) he was having a little bit of trouble coming up with the perfect way to make tomorrow night memorable. At this thought, Donna walked in and Hyde said a silent thanks to the gods, a.k.a. Hendrix and co.

"Donna." Hyde said, walking up to her. "I kinda need your help so if you only talk when I ask and vow never to repeat this conversation to anybody, I would really appreciate it." Not getting the slightest response, Hyde tried again. "Donna?" he said, waving his hand. This shook her out of her daze and she muttered a 'hello' as if only noticing Hyde for the first time. Noticing there were no customers in the store because it was so late, Hyde looked around at Donna absently fingering some records and then at Leo who was standing at the door to his office and was running around in circles, chasing the back of his shirt. _Well, that's normal enough,_ Hyde thought at the sight of Leo. Clicking his fingers, Hyde caught Donna's attention and led her over to the listening pit where they sat on the couch. "Donna, what's going on?" he asked, a bit concerned.

"Nothing." Donna said quickly.

"What, is it Forman?" Hyde asked. Since Eric had left, Donna had talked to him a few times since he was the only childhood friend she had left. Well, except for Kelso but she hadn't talked to him for obvious reasons.

Shaking her head, she answered, "No, it isn't Eric. I just had a fight with Jackie, that's all." Letting his head fall back against the couch, Hyde groaned.

"Dammit, she's gonna be pissed now."

Looking over at him Donna said, "She won't be pissed at you."

Looking back, Hyde replied, "Oh, believe me, she'll find a way." Sighing he continued, "So what was the fight about? Cos I can guarantee anything that Jackie has yelled at you about, she has yelled at me about." Hyde grinned.

Donna laughed a little before answering. "It was about you guys." Hyde frowned, perplexed about why his relationship with Jackie had caused a fight and why it had left Donna so sad. "I… sort of… mentioned that I… might have thought that…"

"Donna, I'm hardly a wordsmith but you think you could speed this up before Leo starts barking." Hyde looked behind him and saw that Leo had stopped chasing his back but had instead proceeded to lie down on one of the bins while scratching his ear. "He's probably going to turn into a werewolf" Hyde said to himself after taking in Leo's actions and his shaggy hair. Turning his attention back to Donna, Hyde gave her the signal to continue.

"I told her that I thought you two were rushing back into things." Donna said with the words flying out of her mouth before she had time to censor herself.

"Huh." Hyde sounded. He sat back against the couch and was deep in thought for a few minutes before forming an actual sentence. "And do you?" Hyde asked, glancing at her.

"I think you two have made a lot of mistakes in the past and I don't think getting back together is the solution to your problems." Donna said, unsure if Jackie's outburst or Hyde's silence was harder to handle.

"Mmm," Hyde said without opening his mouth. "And Jackie didn't take that too well, I'm guessing?"

Donna nodded slowly. "She's had better days."

"You're wrong, you know." Hyde said sincerely. Donna looked over at him with a surprised reaction. "About Jackie and me. We're not rushing anything. It's taken me two years for me to take her out on a real date so if anything we're moving slowly."

"Hyde-" she started, sensing he didn't understand her. But he did.

"I know that's not what you meant, Donna. And I know you're just worried about her, but you don't need to be anymore. I'm gonna be there for her from now on." Hyde said with complete sincerity.

Donna was dumbfounded. "What about being Zen?"

"I'm thinking it's time I got a new script. This show's gone stale." Hyde joked. Donna laughed but suddenly had a good feeling about Jackie and him. Maybe they weren't rushing anything. And maybe she could care to learn a thing or two from them.

----------

HYDE'S ROOM

Hyde was sitting on his bed reading an old comic when he heard the basement door open and close, followed by the animated footsteps of his girlfriend.

"Hey, you." Jackie said, poking her head into the doorframe.

Smiling at the sight of her, Hyde patted the bed for her to sit next to him. She did and after a minute of trying to get comfortable, they were soon lying down with Jackie squeezed up along Hyde's left side and his arm wrapped loosely around her shoulder. "So, did you and Donna talk?" he asked softly.

"Yeah, everything's fine." Jackie replied, happy to be on Donna's good side again.

"You're becoming quite the little badass these days, aren't you?" Hyde said, smirking.

"Well someone has to take over from our fallen Zenmaster. Donna told me you were giving up the act." Jackie teased.

Giving a sarcastic laugh, Hyde said, "Like I could ever go through with that. Love me or leave me. That's how it works." he said jokingly but the comment ran a little too close to home for Jackie to ignore. Hugging him closer to her, she replied,

"I think I'll stick with what I've got." They were both silent for a moment feeling content to be in each others' arms without worrying about the future. "So how was Grooves today?" Jackie asked, finally breaking the silence. Hyde breathed out and responded,

"Made money, got high, sedated Leo when the health inspector came. You know, the usual."

Jackie laughed. "I didn't know health inspectors visited record stores."

"Well, there aren't a lot of restaurants in Point Place so they take what they can get." Hyde smiled when Jackie laughed into his side. He had missed this kind of close contact especially since he had had to settle for sleep the last time they were in this bed. That was changed now.

Hyde groaned when Jackie lifted her head and looked at him in realisation. "You know what's going on here, don't you?" she asked enthusiastically.

"Uhhh, no." Hyde said, unsure of what had gotten her so excited.

"You're telling me about your day! Isn't it fun?" Hyde smiled at Jackie's happy expression.

"Didn't suck."

"Maybe it's something boyfriends and girlfriends do together." Jackie suggested while playing with the collar of his shirt.

"I can think of something else boyfriends and girlfriends do together." Hyde said, playfully. Jackie smiled and leaned down to tease him with the close proximity of their lips.

"Steven, baby…" she breathed.

"Yeah?" Hyde managed to say.

"If it took you…" she said while moving her hand down his shirt to the zipper of his jeans; "…to get down on one knee to get me to go out with you…" she continued while opening his pants and brushing against his boxers; "…what do you think it's gonna take for me…" she took hold of him and he gasped at the first feeling of her in weeks; "…to sleep with you?" Hyde opened his eyes at her last comment and was speechless when she bounced off of him and gave him a quick kiss on the forehead before leaving his room and walking up the stairs to the kitchen.

Left alone in his room, Hyde looked down at his compromising position and groaned, throwing his head down against the pillow. He lifted his head again when he heard rustling under his bed. All of a sudden, Fez popped out looking disappointed.

"Well, if that's all I'm gonna get then I am taking my popsicle elsewhere." With that, Fez flounced out in his trademark manner.

_I've been sitting here for over 2 hours. How long had he been under there? _At any other time, Hyde would have given him a beating, but he was still overcome with frustration at how Jackie had played with him like he was a little toy and how he had loved every second of it. "I don't stand a chance." Hyde said to himself with conviction. Looking down, he muttered, "Sorry, men. False alarm."

----------

FORMAN KITCHEN

Hyde walked gingerly into the kitchen where he saw Jackie and Kitty talking at the table about another hospital fundraiser. Kitty at once acknowledged his presence.

"Steven, honey! There you are. Jackie said you were having a bit of a hard time but that I shouldn't disturb you." Kitty said, concerned. Hyde glared at Jackie who was grinning wickedly. "Do you want me to relieve some of the pressure?" Kitty asked innocently.

"GOD, NO!" Hyde yelled, deeply disturbed. Kitty was taken aback while Jackie could hardly contain her amusement. "I mean, there's no need Mrs. Forman. Jackie will take care of it, won't you Jackie?" Hyde asked, determined not to let her win this game. Jackie, half-expecting him to talk back, replied,

"Sure, if you want me to."

Grinning, Hyde said, "That would be great. We can go for a ride but we should leave it till the rain lets up. You know how quickly you get wet." Hyde smirked, feeling like he was close to victory.

Jackie stood up and walked close to him. "Well, it's not like a ride with you has ever gotten me that wet before." Jackie was convinced that a jibe at Hyde's ego would knock him back. And it did. But just a little.

"Hey, if you think you can handle it then let's go for it by all means. You got a couple of hours?" Hyde asked, unaware of the trap he had put himself in.

"Oh, are you going in a new direction this time? Because a ride with you usually only takes 10 minutes, tops." Hyde was torn between ripping her head off and congratulating her in out-burning him.

Kitty, meanwhile, was looking at the pair of them and trying to figure out why a car journey would inspire such an animated and odd conversation. Putting it down to romanticism, Kitty stood up and left the pair alone, reminding them to "ride safely".

----------

AN HOUR LATER -

FORMAN PORCH

Hyde and Jackie stood at the door, still flirting.

"You have no idea how close I came to being sick in there." Jackie said, laughing.

"You? You weren't the one having Kitty offering to relieve some of you pressure." Hyde reminded her. Jackie fell into him as her laughter was making it hard for her to stand. Hyde wrapped his arms around her and was thankful for the angst-free night they had received from the powers that be. Even though they were starting over, he felt so lucky that they were at this place because it meant that he could show her how could they could be and how she wouldn't have to blackmail him into calling herself his girlfriend. Reluctantly, he pulled away when he saw her cab pull out. "Jackie, you should just let me drive you. I don't want some creep with gold teeth pawing you." Hyde said, protectively.

"Steven, this is Point Place. There's no such thing as criminals here." Jackie assured him.

"Hey!" Hyde said, in mock offence.

"Except you, baby." Jackie said giving him a sweet smile. "I'll see you tomorrow night?" she asked hopefully.

"I'll be there." Hyde told her softly. Jackie smiled and he leaned down to give her a soft kiss on the cheek. Jackie finally gave in and moved her head so that their lips met, unmoving for a split second. Slowly, Hyde moved his hands to cup her face and she moaned softly as he deepened the kiss. Arching her back, Jackie threaded her fingers through his hair and pulled him as close to her as physically possible. The sound of the cab driver honking caused them to break apart. Glaring at the driver who was gesturing for them to hurry up, Hyde rested his head atop Jackie's while she mumbled a few incoherent sounds. "So much for me having to be impolite." Hyde joked.

Finally able to respond, she said, "Throw me in some mud and you'll be getting lucky for sure." Hyde grinned and patted her butt. She turned and walked to the cab door and smiled at him before climbing in.

Hyde smiled after in and walked in a haze to his room, still thinking about that kiss. "Was she always such a good kisser?" he asked himself. _No, you just spent an entire summer making out with her because of her views on the situation in Guatemala. What do you think, dumbass?_ "Alright, jeez. I was just thinking." Hyde was too jazzed to care about the fact that he was talking to himself. Again. About her. "I'm always thinking about her, aren't i?" _Well, duh! It's not like you've got anything else going for you. _Hyde was freaked out. He didn't know that an inner monologue could become so abusive. Deciding it was safer to keep his mouth shut, he closed his eyes and thought about the things to come.

----------

OUTSIDE THE BURKHART MANSION

Jackie was so busy dreaming about the next night that she didn't realise she was home. After paying the fare, she went inside and climbed the stairs to her bedroom, thankful for once that she didn't have to worry about waking anybody.

Too excited to sleep, Jackie was relieved to let down her newly cool attitude and feel like the real, giddy girl she was and announced right then and there to herself that West Side Story didn't hold a candle to her relationship. Call her selfish, bitchy, whiny, or self-obsessed; all Jackie Burkhart cared about was that she had gotten her man. Finally!

_To be continued. _

**A/N: ** So what did you think? I loved writing this one but that could have more to do with my ego than with the quality. I could quite happily write this story for a long time to come but I really want to explore other storylines and leave this in a happy place because the longer it goes on, the harder it becomes to keep this couple from going through more agonising drama. I think we all deserve a little J/H happiness. Next time is the date, I swear! Those of you who review this are amazing and I love you for it. I'll love you even more if you review again. :p

Stay safe.


	9. Hyde and Jackie do Dating

**THE RIGHT WAY AROUND. **

****

Chapter 9 – Hyde and Jackie do Dating. 

**A/N:** You all may hate me for taking this long to write this chapter but I have barely had time to tie my shoes in the morning what with all the schoolwork I have had to do. After this chapter, I will write one more that will go up at the weekend and we'll go from there. This story has accomplished almost everything I have wanted it to which is showing us that the relationship was not totalled after the Chicago fiasco. Anyway, please forgive me for the time taken but I hope you enjoy this more than anything. 'Cos it's the frickin date!

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing and after the crap the show spilled out in Season 8, I'm relieved to have nothing to do with the show.

SOMEWHERE IN AFRICA

It didn't take a lot to rock Eric Forman's world. Falling for a beautiful woman wrecked him and having her love him back did so even more. He had been faced with many important decisions in his young life, many of which were a result of his own screw-ups but nothing had been able to shake him to the extent as the letter he had just received from a life-long companion in Point Place had. Steven Hyde, one of his oldest friends, had taken it upon himself to be this month's news giver and had not failed in providing Eric with a thing or two to make him happy that he had gotten out when he had. Among the news of his mom's recent trip to the land of fewer brain cells and of Donna and Jackie's massive blow-up, was the revelation that Jackie and Hyde were headed full steam ahead to a normal, healthy relationship; three words that were not synonymous with the Jackie and Hyde he had left behind 8 weeks earlier.

Re-reading the fifth paragraph again, Eric carefully mouthed the words to himself as if it would provide him with a clearer understanding of what had possessed his friend to take a leaf out of his book pull his head out of his ass long enough to make the first decent decision Hyde had made in as long as Eric could remember.

_"- so a bunch of stuff happened with her dad and before I knew it I was down on one knee, asking her out… " _

_---------- _

3 WEEKS EARLIER

GROOVES

"Hyde, man. What are you doing? We got customers to serve here." Leo reprimanded to his boss who was leaned over the counter writing a letter. Hyde's head snapped up.

"Di-di-did y-yo-you…" Hyde trailed off, struggling to breathe at the apparent lucidity of his favourite hippie.

Leo continued, "This giraffe isn't gonna feed itself, you know. Me and the panda over there can't handle everything by ourselves so get back to work." He stumbled off and Hyde felt his heartbeat return to its natural rhythm now that Leo had proven his complete lack of sanity to him. Shaking his head Hyde noticed that Leo was correct in saying that the store was slightly more full than usual, so he put down the barely started piece of writing and returned to helping do God's work by weeding out any Andy Gibb, ABBA, Journey, Elton John or Osmond fans and embracing those who had seen the darkness.

_Forman will have to wait_ Hyde thought to himself.

----------

THE HUB

Kelso and Fez were seated around the table by the window, glaring furiously at the group of 6 young teenagers laughing and currently occupying the gang's usual booth. Fez couldn't bite his tongue any longer.

"I cannot believe those sons of bitches! When I came to America I was promised a land of freedom, fairness and sluts. And what have I seen? None of it, I tell you. None of it!" Fez breathed heavily and tightened his fist. Kelso shook his head in agreement.

"I know what you mean man. Except for the sluts thing. That's the one thing I love about this country. That, and balloon animals but they're just out of this world!" Kelso finished with a shriek. Jackie walked back from the bathroom and promptly sat herself down on the edge of her seat and bit her nails nervously. Gasping in horror, the two biggest perverts in Wisconsin stared crazily at their princess/ex do-it buddy.

"My God, Jackie, what's wrong?" Kelso started, looking at Jackie's chipped nails in concern.

Realising her actions, Jackie immediately stopped herself and smiled weakly at the pair. "Sorry, it's just my first date is with Steven tonight and I don't think I can handle the wait any longer. I swear I'm gonna bend him over the nearest table I see the second I see him if I have to wait any longer!" Her hands were shaking by this point and Fez was torn between feeling horny and feeling curious.

_"Ah well, my horniness isn't going anywhere"_ Fez thought so, knowing there was a bathroom nearby in case things got a bit, erm, hard to handle, he decided to go with the latter and continue talking with Jackie.

"My princess, you really shouldn't worry yourself. Hyde is in love with you and he will make this the most memorable night of your life," Jackie smiled widely and thanked Fez. "And if need be, you can always bend me over the counter because I am quite limber I'll have you know." Fez said smiling like the loveable sicko he was.

_"Aii!"_ Fez hollered after receiving yet another hit from Hyde. "Oh, hello there, Hyde. I didn't see you come in but just so you know, your head is looking as delicious as ever. My offer still stands, you know, so I'm ready to kiss it even if you are in the shower lathering up your well toned body" Fez rambled.

Hyde stared blankly at Fez. "Don't ever do that." Hyde finally replied. Focusing his attention back onto his girlfriend, they shared a shy smile with and he sat down beside her. Noticing her foot tapping against the floor impatiently, Hyde rolled his eyes and threw his arm casually around her shoulders and she leaned into him immediately. Kelso seemed to have only just noticed Hyde and looked at him quizzically.

"Hey Hyde, shouldn't you be at the store or something?" Kelso inquired.

"Shouldn't you be at the station or something?" Hyde retorted, eating off of Jackie's untouched plate.

"Nah, I was just telling these guys. I got a week's vacation. It's unpaid and I had to get out of there in a hurry but it was a sweet deal after I let our dogs sit in the old execution chair. Man, my job is the best. I thought I'd get in trouble for sure considering what happened." Kelso smiled, oblivious.

Hyde nudged Jackie. "What happened?"

She paused in thought for a moment before answering, "Well, let's just say the Golden Retriever is not so Golden anymore." Hyde's eyes widened.

"Kelso, you didn't!"

"Well how was I supposed to know a dry sponge could give a dog full-blown syphilis?" Kelso yelled in defence.

"Michael, it wasn't syphilis! You skinned its hair! It was like full-body alopecia! Jackie shouted back. Hyde muttered to himself at his friend's seemingly growing stupidity but then saw that Fez was glaring at something over his shoulder and he once again nudged Jackie to look at whatever Fez was seething at.

Jackie groaned, "Oh, get over it Fez. It's not like nobody else has ever sat in our seats before." She soon regretted her words when Fez whipped his head around to her and shot her daggers.

"It is not just the fact that they are sitting in OUR seats that have been OUR seats longer than Charlie's Angels have been on the air! It is the fact that they could not see past their own pale and pasty faces and include someone of another ethnic group in their little clique!" Fez shot up and stormed off out of the Hub, leaving a room full of bewildered faces.

"And on that note…" Hyde started, standing up, "…I better get back to work. There's only so long a guy can fob off the accountant before he starts wondering where all our receipts are going."

"Now Steven, do you want to end up going down the same road as my dad did?" Jackie warned.

"Don't worry, babe. I'm using them for my own pleasure but not in that way." Hyde smirked.

Jackie's eyes widened in realisation. "Oh! You mean-"

"Oregano!" Hyde interrupted, stopping Jackie from blurting out something he would rather keep as a rumour.

Jackie smiled apologetically and stood up to give him a quick kiss. "I'll see you tonight then?" she reminded him.

"Yep."

"And you won't tell me where we're going?"

"Nope."

"But I do have to wear something tight?"

"Well, damn Jackie. Even that's an obvious one." Kelso interjected. Jackie slapped the top of his head and returned her focus to her boyfriend.

"Well, just so you know, I want something momentous. I'm talking carriages, horses, champagne, pianists; the works! I ain't some piece of street trash, yo!" Jackie clarified. Hyde just stared at her.

"No more Richard Pryor on cable!" he told her and left.

----------

THAT NIGHT

HYDE'S ROOM

Having just walked through an empty living room, kitchen, and basement, Hyde was half-expecting to see his friends or the Formans' gathered in his room. No such luck. Grateful for the solitude, Hyde flopped down on his bed and silently cursed himself for leaving the store with a newbie. When Hyde had returned from the Hub, there was a queue lined up from the cash register to the listening pit and the phone was ringing incessantly. After a few more mishaps, Hyde promptly fired Randy for turning the place into such a circus. He felt a bit guilty but Randy had been screwing up since the moment he had been hired and Hyde wasn't prepared to let his store go down the pits, regardless of his work ethic. Letting out a loud moan, Hyde sat up and checked the clock, realising he had just over an hour before he had to pick up Jackie. Smiling to himself, he couldn't wait until she saw what he had in store for them tonight.

----------

45 MINUTES LATER

JACKIE'S ROOM

"So he hasn't told you a thing?" Jackie asked through the bathroom door.

"No, all he ever writes about is how scary it is out there and how needed he is to everyone. But apparently I am not everyone because has given me absolutely no indication that he is even thinking of coming back." Donna said, sighing. "I know I should be really supportive of Eric. But I just really miss him and I hate having to listen to him talk about all the people he is with when he should really be with me." Walking around the room, Donna fingered one of the dozens of stuffed unicorns and looked at it sadly. "You got off easy. People keep you around for years just by how cute you are to look at." she said to it.

"Aw, thank you, Donna!" Jackie said through the door.

"No, I wasn't talking to you." Donna replied without thinking but began to panic when there was a moment's pause.

"Then… who were you talking to?" Jackie inquired.

"Uh…" Donna was blushing; embarrassed that she had been caught talking to a toy. "Nobody, just myself you know?" she said, laughing it off.

"My poor Donna. Rule number four of talking to yourself is that you always tell the truth." Donna's mouth opened in offence and she was about to retaliate before remembering that this was Jackie she was talking to.

Taking a different approach, Donna asked, "So what are the first three rules?"

Jackie sighed and began, "Well, rule number one is that you only do it when you are sad or desperate." Donna rolled her eyes and envisioned herself kicking a Jackie shaped ball down a field. "Rule number two is that you never do it when it is about a boy, and rule number-"

"Jackie, are there any rules that will not make me look like a pathetic loser?" Donna interrupted, growing increasingly frustrated at the never-ending tirade of abuse she received from her.

"Donna, if you only want me to say things that make you look good, then we are not going to have a hell of a lot less to talk about." Jackie replied.

"Oh, Jackie just forget it because you-!" Donna stopped mid-sentence when she saw Jackie step out into the room and give her a shy twirl.

"So, do I look OK? It's been so long since I have been out on a date that I'm not really sure what to wear. Steven usually just liked me wearing my cheerleader uniform or more often that not, nothing at all. But this is-"

"Jackie, shut up." Donna said, smiling in amazement. Stepping up to her she continued, "You look beautiful." Jackie smiled widely and embraced her friend in a tight hug. Donna had barely had time to wrap her arms around Jackie when the hug was caught short.

"As touching as this moment is, I will go psycho on your ass if my outfit gets creased!" Jackie joked. They both shared a laugh but stopped when they heard a car pull up. "Oh, my God! It's Steven!" Jackie practically flew out of the room and down the stairs leaving a bemused Donna trailing after her.

"Jackie, wait up!" she called.

Jackie paused at the bottom of the stairs and waited impatiently as Donna joined her. "What? I have to go before I wet myself."

"Well as sexy as that is…" Donna trailed off with a disgusted look. "You might want to take a breath and remember that this is Hyde's first date as well so he is going to be just as nervous as you."

"Yeah, but he is hardly the kind of guy to show it. I'll have to just see how it goes."

Shaking her head, Donna tried to get Jackie to comprehend what she was saying.

"Forget about Zen. What was Hyde before that? What was the one thing he had that every other man had? The one thing that puts him in exactly the same category as every other guy out there?"

Jackie shrugged her shoulders. "His hairy chest?"

Breathing loudly to control herself, Donna tried again.

"Close. What else does he have?" she said slowly.

"Hairy arms." Jackie said.

"Not exactly." Donna said softly.

"His hairy legs?"

"No-"

"His hairy ankles?"

"A PENIS, JACKIE! PENIS! PENIS! PENIS!"

"My kind of girl." Hyde smirked, walking into the foyer.

The ladies spun around and turned red with embarrassment.

"Hyde!" "Steven!" they announced in unison.

Jackie pushed Donna out of the way and went up to put her hands on Hyde's chest. "We were, um, just, um, talking about, um… what Eric is really lacking in!" Jackie yelled, relieved to have found an answer. "Weren't we, Donna?"

"You know, I don't need to know about what Forman has got. Or doesn't for that matter." Hyde said, freaked. He attempted to regain his composure but that was shot to hell when he took in Jackie's appearance. What she was wearing seemed pretty irrelevant to him because at the moment, all he could take in was that she looked absolutely breathtaking. _How the hell could I have slept with her for two years and never noticed how beautiful she is?_ Jackie had noticed Hyde's penetrating gaze at her and she felt buoyed by his reaction. Taking his hand, she led him out into the hall and waved a short goodbye to Donna. Once they had reached the path, Jackie realised that Hyde was without his sunglasses meaning that she was fully aware of how focused he was on her.

"Steven?" she questioned.

Hyde heard her but had apparently forgotten that the normal response to a question was to speak an answer. Or to speak. Period.

"_Ste-ven_?" she tried again in a sing-song voice. Jackie decided that since Hyde wouldn't be answering her anytime soon, it would be better if she just ushered him to the car.

Getting in, Hyde slowly put the keys into the ignition and pulled out of the driveway, all the while keeping his gaze focused on anything but Jackie. The last thing he needed was being in court charged with dangerous driving by cause of a hard-on the size of the Empire State Building.

Twenty minutes into the drive, Hyde's silence had turned Jackie's glee into pure nervousness. Sure, it had been nice to have him literally speechless at the sight of her, but an awkwardly silent Hyde was much more difficult to handle than a pissed off/jubilant/turned on/depressed silent Hyde. However, they had been driving for almost half an hour and Jackie decided that enough was enough.

"Look, Steven, this silence was flattering but now it's just creepy. How about we try some flirting, huh?" she asked while looking closely at him. To her surprise, he turned and looked at her for a moment before shrugging and returning his attention to the road.

"That's cool." Hyde said in a sincere, un-Hyde way. In fact, Jackie didn't know how to handle the un-Hyde Hyde since it had taken her so long to adapt to the Hyde Hyde.

However, he hadn't been silent for 20 minutes purely because of how hot she looked. That had only taken up 7 minutes and 34 seconds according to the clock strapped to his dashboard. Hyde had spend the rest of the time feeling completely terrified at what he was supposed to do now that they were actually on a date. It was foreign territory for the pair of them and with their history; things were not bound to go smoothly.

----------

10 MINUTES LATER

Hyde had livened up a bit and they were now in the middle of a very animated debate about why Jackie thought headlights should be dark purple with a light pink middle so that people could be blinded in a fashionable way. In her eyes, it would provoke less road rage. Hyde, however, couldn't disagree more and argued that any guy who flashed him purple and pink lights had better pray to God for a safe trip to whatever ditch Hyde could throw them into fast enough. Hyde was about to respond to the absurdity Jackie's comment that his car should be her test model when she suddenly pulled out a long, wide book from under her seat and laid it open on her lap.

"Jackie, what the hell is that?" he quizzed.

"It's the Jackie and Steven date diary. Duh!" Jackie scolded, holding up the book to show him the half pink, half navy cover which had two pictures of them glued to the front with a heart surrounding them.

"And why was it in my car and why the hell am I in a big heart?" Hyde's voice was rising and Jackie was quick to appease him.

"Well, I put you in the crooked half of the heart. See?" she said, quickly pointing to the half of the heart which was pointed and rough compared to the smooth half that encompassed her picture. "You agreed to date me, Steven. And if you thought I was obsessive before, or with Michael, then you are _sadly_ mistaken." Jackie finished, not looking up from her work.

In the last hour, Hyde's face had gone from amused, to stunned, to nervous, and now to completely freaked out. He swore right there and then that if he didn't get laid tonight, then the pages of that book were going to help provide him the sweetest bonfire. Seeing the sign for their destination, Hyde stopped the car.

"We're here." Hyde said.

Jackie looked around at the field they had stopped at. Too confused to say anything, she stared at her boyfriend.

"We should probably get going." Hyde added. He got out and walked around to her door and gave her his hand to help her out. "Oh, hey could you give me my keys. I left them on my seat." Hyde smiled at her and she turned and bent in to get his keys. However, she soon lost her vision when she felt herself blindfolded.

"What the hell?!" she screamed while grasping the doorframe. Hyde chuckled at her pose.

"It's all part of the surprise." he reassured her. Standing her up, he led her forward and in the distance, music and laughter could be heard. They were almost there…

----------

Jackie had been blindfolded for almost five minutes but was aware of the loud noises around her and the sounds of people laughing and joking. Suddenly, the blindfold came off and Jackie was speechless.

"You brought me to a carnival?" she asked, disbelievingly.

"Yep." Hyde said, proud of himself. Jackie, however glared at him.

"That's the best thing you could think of to do for our first date?"

"Nope." Hyde replied. "It's the best thing **you** could think of to do for our first date." This comment left Jackie a bit lost for words. A little off-put by her confusion, Hyde reminded her…

----------

_SEPTEMBER 1978 _

_HYDE'S ROOM _

_Jackie: Wait a minute. You're mad at me for telling Donna a secret? Steven, I tell secrets, it's who I am. _

_Hyde: Look, all I'm saying is if you're gonna be my girlfriend, you can't go running around shooting off your big, fat cheerleader mouth. _

_Jackie: You just called me your girlfriend. _

_Hyde: No, I didn't. _

_Jackie: Yes, you did. _

_Hyde: No, I didn't. _

_Jackie: Yes, you did. _

_Hyde: No, I didn't. _

_Jackie: Yes, you did, and shut up. You're ruining it. Okay, now listen to me. (Jackie moves to sit by him and puts one leg over his as she faces him.) I'll keep my mouth shut if you admit that I'm your girlfriend. _

_Hyde: No, the price is too high. _

_Jackie: Okay, fine. You know what? I'm telling everybody everything anyways, starting with the fact that you called me your girlfriend. _

_Hyde: You're blackmailing me? (Jackie nods and Hyde grins.) You're coming along nicely. (They kiss.) _

_Jackie: So, now that I'm your girlfriend you're gonna have to take me out on dates. _

_Hyde: Sure, and then we can go play with unicorns and talk about how great Kelso is in bed. (Hyde frowns) _

_Jackie: Look, Steven, the entire time I was with Michael I could only get him to take me out as long as I paid. _

_Hyde: Yeah, well I don't care if he made you drive the cab, I'm not taking you to some roller disco or ABBA tribute show. (scoffs) _

_Jackie: No, that's what we do on our anniversary. The perfect first date is… going to the carnival! (Hyde stares) I never got to go when I was younger because of well… (Jackie clears her throat) it wasn't seen as something my family would do but I swore that I would get my boyfriend to take me to one on our first date. So you just tell me where and when. (Jackie smiled while Hyde stood up and left) _

----------

END FLASHBACK

----------

"So, I'm telling you here and now." Hyde said softly but inside he was already preparing to say goodbye to his balls because there was no way he could keep them after this. _Oh, crap!_ Jackie lifted her head and tears were streaming down her cheeks. He took her in his arms and she clung to him fiercely. After a few minutes, her tears began to subside so Hyde brushed away some of the tears from her face.

Jackie was still too awed to speak and instead leaned up to him and captured his mouth so that she could show him how overcome she was.

The pair stood, locked in their kiss, and to passers by, they appeared to be nothing other than a happy, young couple in love.

And for the first time, that was what they were.

----------

"Steven! Quick, quick!" Jackie said to him as she rushed towards the carousel. Hyde, meanwhile, was barely moving as he was weighed down by the stuffed panda, the stuffed, horse, the stuffed, duck, the stuffed pig, the stuffed, dog, the stuffed bear, and of course, the stuffed unicorn. Not to mention the bag slung over his shoulder which was overflowing with candy for Fez, an inflatable axe for Donna, a toy shotgun for Red, a beer bong for Kelso, and a witch's hat for Kitty.

Hyde eventually caught up with Jackie and she smiled lovingly at him. Hyde put the items down and bent over to catch his breath. Jackie patted his hair and couldn't get over at how perfect he was being. Even though he had told her over, and over again that this was a one time thing, Jackie didn't care because it was worth dealing with the old Hyde for the rest of her life if she could keep with her the memory of this night.

"So, are you coming or not?" Jackie asked when he had settled down.

"On the carousel? No, I think I'll just go ahead with the testicle removal. 'Cos that would be a hell of a lot less painful, babe." Hyde smiled and Jackie relented, surprisingly.

"OK, but I am going on regardless because I told you that I wanted horses, carriages, champagne, and the works." Jackie stated.

"But you forget. We already have those." Hyde said, holding up everything he had won for her after she had taunted his masculinity. He knew she had been trying to get a rise out of him by making him win her the prizes but he figured there was no point in suddenly acting macho. Plus, he had gotten a scorching kiss everytime the vendor handed him the prize so he figured he could handle a little more torture.

"Not enough, Steven. I have loved carousels longer than I have loved you so there's nothing that can stop me now." Jackie grinned and stuck her tongue out at him. She turned around and climbed onto the horse while Hyde smiled despite himself.

A few minutes later, the carousel was full and began to move round and round. Jackie felt like she was on cloud nine at that very moment as she was fulfilling at childhood dream of having her boyfriend take her to the carnival. Things were better with her dad after their meeting in the park and she knew that, given time, she might have a somewhat normal family. With that issue gone from her mind, she simply let herself enjoy the moment and worry about life another time.

As the ride ended, Jackie felt completely exhilarated and launched onto Hyde, wrapping her legs around his waist. "Hi." She said sweetly.

"Hi." Hyde replied, in a mockingly sweet voice.

"Watch it." Jackie warned him, playfully.

"Oh, no. I think that after everything I have done for you tonight, I should at least be able to make one sarcastic comment.

Jackie shook her head. "My sweet Steven. You don't seem to understand that you don't get to do anything anymore unless I tell you." she reminded him lightheartedly.

"It's how Red always told me it would be." Hyde said in reflection. Hyde tapped her thighs making her jump down. He smirked, grabbed her hand, and said, "Come on. We've got one more ride to go on." Jackie looked at him quizzically before he started running with her dragging behind him.

----------

5 MINUTES LATER

"Raise your arms!" the operator hollered and Jackie and Hyde did just that as the bar was moved down over them.

"OK, even this is a bit too scary. I can only handle the sweetness for so long before it starts to unnerve me. How can you possibly be willing to ride a ferris wheel? Don't you know that even Eric wouldn't be girly enough to do this?" Jackie joked.

"Well, you see, most guys think a ferris wheel is supposed to be romantic so they never do it. But…" Hyde trailed.

"But?"

"It's the ultimate aphrodisiac." Jackie looked perplexed. "High up, under the stars, nobody to interrupt you, and nobody who can see you." Jackie's furrowed brow quickly turned into a wicked smile.

"Oh, you are so the guy's guy." Hyde laughed and like a couple of French people at a frenching festival, they started frenching.

----------

BACK IN AFRICA

_"… So as tempted as I was to go ahead with the sex change, Jackie has been making it worth my while. _

_So I'm less pissed off again and you're not even around to see it. That sucks, man. Come home soon because I can't wait for you to see Han and Leia get it on-" _

"That's just sick, Hyde!" Eric yelled out, startling the entire classroom. Eric put his head back down and finished off the letter.

_"…But, whatever Forman. You're doing good out there and we're all doing pretty good back here. Except for… well you don't need me to go into it. _

_See ya. _

_Hyde. \o-o/ _

Eric sighed to himself and knew what, or who, Hyde wasn't going to talk about. _Damn _he thought.

----------

ONE MONTH LATER

POINT PLACE

FORMAN BASEMENT

Jackie sat on the couch with a completely blank expression. Before she had any more time to wallow, the door opened and in walked her boyfriend with a look that she recognized as "I'm happy but don't expect to know why". But Jackie noticed something different about him and as soon as he had told her his reason for being so happy, she blurted out her reason for being so glum.

"I own Grooves!"

"I'm pregnant."

_To be continued. _

**A/N: ** See? Isn't pure fluff nice every once in a while. Well, almost pure fluff. :p Sucky ending but it wasn't going to be a meaningful revelation in my eyes. Hyde was frighteningly out of character but the same could be said for him in Season 8 so that's my excuse lol. Hope it was worth the wait because we are nearing the end of our ride so could you please prepare for the final stop by dropping me a review

Stay safe.


	10. Consequences

**THE RIGHT WAY AROUND.**

Chapter 10 - Consequences.

**A/N:** Glad you all enjoyed the last chapter because it made me want to get this out faster. Thanks for the support! BTW, forgive the name of the French restaurant but I thought it would be believable that Point Place would have that huge a lack of class. I was a little creatively challenged with this one.

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing and after the crap the show spilled out in Season 8, I'm relieved to have nothing to do with the show.

FORMAN BASEMENT

"You're pregnant."

"I'm pregnant."

"You're pregnant."

"Yeah, I think we've been over this part already." Jackie said with a slight laugh. Hyde, however, had an expression a little too close to pure terror for Jackie to feel any confidence in his reaction to her surprise revelation.

Exhaling loudly, Hyde perched himself on the edge of the lawn chair and stared up at her. "You're really pregnant?" he asked in a soft voice.

Giving him a small smile, she slowly nodded and sat on the edge of the couch so that they were close but not fully touching. "Yeah, a couple of weeks." Jackie answered. She noticed Hyde's furrowed brow.

"But we've only been sleeping together for 1 week. I mean, except for the-"

"-date." Jackie finished for him. Hyde nodded. It was true that they hadn't planned on having sex but that night had been so strange for the both of them that it seemed like the only logical thing to do. After that night, and the next morning, they had agreed to hold off until they were feeling more secure with their new arrangement. Or at least until they could go 5 minutes without jumping each other. It looked like Jackie would have a few more things to add to the first date page in their book. Shockingly, Hyde was the first to speak.

"I guess you really shouldn't re-use a condom." Hyde stated with a smirk.

"Ew, Steven!" Jackie said with a grimace. Hyde's faces resumed its serious expression. But this time she could see blatant concern on it.

"And you're OK? I mean, there haven't been any problems?" Jackie was thrown by his line of questioning since she had expected him to scream louder than when she had taken the lavender scented candles from his room. And she couldn't calm him down now the way she had done so that time because that was how they had ended up here. _Focus, Jackie! _she reprimanded herself.

"Everything's fine. I mean not-"

"Yeah, yeah. I know what you mean." Hyde interrupted.

The pair sat in silence for the next few minutes before the questions bubbling in their minds became too much to hold in.

"What do you want to do?" they asked in unison. They laughed nervously and Hyde signalled for Jackie to go first.

"What do I want to do?" Jackie asked him. He nodded but she had no answer so instead gave him a pause with a nice little sigh thrown in. "I really don't know, Steven." Jackie said finally. Hyde again nodded as if he had been anticipating such an answer. They had never really been able to make any decisions when it came to their relationship. Or at least they had never been able to make any good ones. _Up until recently_ Hyde thought to himself. They were supposed to be doing this the right way around but now… now they were back to being clueless.

"Jackie," Hyde started, "I wish I could tell you something good but I've got nothing." He dropped his head and looked so sorrowful and ashamed that Jackie rushed to reassure him.

"Hey, hey, relax. I didn't say this so you'd get down on one knee. You already did that once this year." She joked. But Hyde's shamed expression did not change. "Look, I know this isn't what you were expecting when you came in but that doesn't mean we can't get through this. We'll just take our time…"

"Take our time? In case you hadn't noticed, Jackie, we're kind of on a clock here." Hyde said, pointing to her stomach. Rubbing his hand over his forehead, he continued, "I-I-I'm sorry. I'm just-"

"Scared?" Jackie queried. His lack of response gave her his answer. _Some things never change_ she thought. "Yeah, me too. Look, I think we should both take some time to ourselves before trying to make any decisions. I have to meet my dad soon anyway, so I'll call you tonight?" she asked softly.

"Your dad…" Hyde said in deep thought. Ding. "Oh yeah, you two are having dinner together or something." Jackie nodded. "OK, um, you should go. We'll talk later." Hyde said forcing a smile. Giving him a short kiss, Jackie said her goodbye and left, figuring it was his turn to wallow.

----------

AN HOUR LATER

FRENCHIES' RESTAURANT

Jack stared quizzically at his daughter who had spent the last ten minutes swirling spaghetti around her fork and mixing it into her water glass.

"Sweetie, what are you doing?" Jack asked in a kind voice.

"Oh, you know. Just trying to prepare for the weird cravings I keep hearing about. I swear women just use pregnancy to get away with being fat and ugly." Jackie answered while dousing her soup with marmalade she had pulled out of her purse. Noticing his silence, Jackie looked up to see her father staring at her dumbfounded. "Oops."

----------

FORMAN BASEMENT

Hyde stood at the bottom of the stairs and fixed his eyes on the smoky room before him. The goods had been lit for a solid 5 minutes yet he could not bring himself to bask in it for fear of hallucinating Kelso and Fez as giant perverted babies. _Like that would be a reality stretch _Hyde thought with a snicker. Groaning, Hyde looked down to the ground. "Please forgive me for what I am about to do."

Walking over to the source of the smoke, Hyde blew it out and sprayed the area with air freshener. "I'm going to hell for that." Hyde convinced himself.

----------

GROOVES

Randy packed up the last of his things with a huff and was about to leave when the front door opened and a young blonde walked in with a suitcase. Randy had to manually lift his jaw up. "Uh, may I help you?" he stuttered.

Smiling, she answered, "Maybe. My name is Sam and I'm looking for Hyde. Is that you?" Sam asked him with wide eyes. Randy looked at her confusedly.

"You're looking for someone and you don't know what he looks like?" Randy inquired.

"Well, I met him in Vegas and now I need a place to crash so I figured I'd look him up. Only problem is that I can't remember what he looks like so I have been going door to door until I find him." Sam said, proud at her 'wisdom'.

"Couldn't you have just looked him up in the phone book?" Randy queried, thinking that she and Kelso could form their very own cradle of idiocy. Seeing her puzzled look, Randy answered her original question. "This is Hyde's store so he'll be here eventually. Wait around if you want." Banging the door behind him, Randy stormed off, and out of Point Place.

Sam wandered around and let out a scream when a scruffy looking stoner appeared in front of her. Calming down, she asked, "Are you Hyde?"

"Sure." he answered distractedly.

----------

30 MINUTES LATER

Yawning, Hyde walked into his store and noticed that it was strangely empty. "Anybody here?" he called out. No answer. Swearing that he needed to start hiring people who knew what closing up meant now that he owned the place, Hyde walked up to the counter and checked that the cash register was locked when he noticed a note scribbled to him in familiar handwriting. Lifting it up, Hyde read aloud,

_Hey man. Some chick came in and said we're married so we're going on our honeymoon. Lucky me, huh? She's real smart man and said that she's a candy stripper so she'll pay our way. Thanks for everything and good luck with loud girl. You'll need it 'cos I think she's still in love with me, man. All the chicks love Leo._

Laughing, Hyde tossed the note away since he was convinced he would find Leo curled up on his desk in the morning. Checking the clock, Hyde saw that it was getting close to midnight and that Jackie should be home by now. Picking up the phone, he decided to get this over with.

----------

BURKHART MANSION

"He doesn't love me anymore!" Jackie wailed into the phone.

Back in her own house. Donna held the phone away from her as the piercing cries of her best friend were too much to bear at this time of the night. "Jackie-"

"I thought he had changed but he's running away like before!"

"Jackie, what are you-"

"I'm gonna have to do this all alone!"

"JACKIE!" Donna yelled to shut her up.

"Yes?" Jackie answered meekly.

"Why would you think that Hyde has left you?" Donna asked calmly.

"Because I told him I would call him tonight but he's not picking up at the house!" Jackie said, beginning to cry again.

"Jackie, what the hell. He's probably at work." Donna replied, amazed at her friend's ability to jump to conclusions. Immediately the sniffling stopped.

"Oh, of course Donna! I knew Steven wouldn't leave me to take care of this baby all by myself. Thank you!" Jackie cheered.

"You're welco- WHAT?" Donna yelled. "You're pregnant? Jackie? Jackie?" Donna stared in shock at the phone as she heard nothing but the dial tone.

----------

GROOVES

30 SECONDS LATER

"AH!" Hyde screamed when the phone began to ring just as he put his hand on it. Clearing his throat to rid himself of the memory of such a pansy-ass moment, Hyde picked it up and answered,

"Grooves."

"Oh, hey Steven." Jackie answered as nonchalantly as possible.

Sitting down on the stool, Hyde became a lot more focused. "Jackie. I was just about to call you."

"You were?" Jackie squeaked.

"Uh… yeah." Hyde answered, confused by her behaviour. "Are you OK?"

"Swell." Jackie said quickly.

"Swell?" Hyde queried.

"Swell." Jackie stated firmly.

"Good." Hyde replied slowly.

"Good."

The pair remained silent for a moment, trying to think of how to express their emotions in whole sentences.

"I told my dad." Jackie blurted out to end the silence. "That I was pregnant, I mean." she continued. Hyde was a bit taken aback but shrugged it off.

"That would explain the gun poking me in the back." Hyde joked.

"Oh no, mister. Do not think for one second that by me being pregnant, you are going to force me into having some shotgun wedding." Hyde laughed, pleased that they had been able to keep this conversation light so far. However, they needed to talk seriously about this because it was not some trivial thing that could be put off again and again until it blew up in their faces. That was how they had broken up in the first place. Giving in to his newfound sense of maturity, Hyde began,

"How did he take it?"

"Not great. But not awful either. I told him that we hadn't gotten everything figured out but that we were going to stick together so I think he's as satisfied as can be…"

"Jackie…"

"… but it wouldn't hurt for you to stop making jokes about how you will throw me off a cliff with the rest of your crap."

"Jackie…"

"I know, Steven," she reassured him, "I know. We need to talk."

"Yeah, we do, don't we." _This is ridiculous_ Jackie thought. They were getting nowhere. "I want the baby. I mean I want to have it and I want us to keep it." Hyde rambled out, as he knew he wasn't likely to repeat himself. "It may be your body but I don't think that ultimately holds a lot of weight. So what do you think?" he finished.

"What do I think? I think I should kiss you for saying what I wanted to hear and slap you silly for being such a man!" Hyde laughed but, for the sake of his shins, was thankful that they were on opposite sides of the town. Jackie continued, "So what I'm saying is… I'm saying that I want what you want. I want to have this baby." Jackie finished quietly.

Hyde smiled into the phone, relieved that they had overcome the first obstacle intact. "We're gonna totally screw this up, you know?" Hyde stated as reality sat in.

Jackie let out a short laugh. "Well, duh! With our backwards genes, this baby will be the most popular badass, athletic stoner Wisconsin has ever seen!"

"Our very own paradox." Hyde joked.

"Like us!" Jackie said enthusiastically.

"Like us." Hyde said softly. Clearing his throat he continued, "You know Jackie, this whole one word sentence thing is fun and all but we should probably cut it out before we're getting burned by a foetus." he reminded her playfully.

"Mmmm…" Jackie sounded, "I don't think so. I think everyone has had enough of your backward sense of coolness so it's time to give in and just play along with me." They were getting sidetracked but it was an easy for them to do and with what lay ahead of them, one more night of flirty fun was too tempting to pass up.

So Point Place's newest parents-to-be talked into the small hours about anything they could think of as long as it didn't lead to them making any more life-changing decisions.

----------

FORMAN KITCHEN

Kitty was so busy dancing to her Judas Priest record that she almost had a heart attack when she turned around and saw her 5 surrogate children standing before her, stifling their laughter. Flustered, Kitty fixed her hair and pointed her finger at all of them saying, "Let this be a lesson to you." And with that, she made yet another ambiguous exit.

"You know I think I'm gonna miss seeing Mrs Forman shake her ass more than anything else." Kelso thought aloud, earning him three 'ews' and one pissed off foreigner.

Swallowing, Fez said, "I don't know what hurt more. Hearing that or taking a bite of this plastic pear." Blinking back tears, Fez croaked, "But it still hurt." He stormed off and Donna, upon seeing Hyde and Jackie practically going at it against the fridge, was left with no choice but to chase after him.

Coming out of his daydream, Kelso frowned at the sight of his best friend and ex-girlfriend. "You know, I don't think I'll miss seeing the two of you doing that." Kelso hollered, forcing the pair to break apart and giving him a close-up of Jackie's half-open blouse. "You may have gotten her knocked up, Hyde, but there's no need for that kind of immoral display of public indecency."

"This, from the man moving to work at a Playboy club." Hyde stated. "Speaking of which, when are you moving, Kelso?" Hyde asked while Jackie nibbled at his ear.

"Once that I'm assured that my godchild is being left in good hands. I ain't leaving it with two people who would do it on a fridge." Kelso reprimanded, standing up to get a drink from the now accessible fridge.

"Once again, coming from a man who got a girl knocked up in the bathroom of a Molly Hatchet concert." Hyde said, smirking.

"Yeah, Michael. We haven't even discussed who are going to be the baby's godparents so you might wanna slow down there." Jackie told him.

Kelso's eyes narrowed and Jackie backed up a step. "Do you mean to tell me that the two of you are even considering the notion of having anybody other than me to be the godfather of your baby?" Jackie let out a nervous laugh.

"Michael, relax. We're not saying we won't pick you, but **if** we pick you then we might feel obligated to pick Brooke as godmother like you did with me and Steven when you made us Betsy's godparents." Jackie reminded him.

"We're Betsy's godparents?" Hyde asked. Jackie slapped his arm. "I never even see that kid."

"OK, first off, screw Brooke. Hell, I did and I got a baby out of it so who knows what you will get." Kelso said seriously but Hyde was still half-considering the option earning him yet another slap from Jackie. "Secondly, I didn't pick either one of you because I felt obligated. I picked you because you were the best for Betsy"

"Oh, Michael!" Jackie cooed.

"Thanks, man." Hyde smiled.

"I mean, I couldn't let her have two hot godparents. Sorry, Hyde." Kelso said, giving Hyde a pitying smile but instead received a punch and a slap from each side. "Wow, double frog." Kelso said in awe. "I'm gonna miss you guys so much!" Kelso threw himself onto the both of them and swallowed them in a giant bear hug.

----------

FORMAN DRIVEWAY

Everybody had since cleared out and Hyde was thankful for the peace and quiet. Turning to Jackie who sat napping on one of the seats, he leaned down and picked her up causing her to stir briefly before snuggling in closer to him. Hyde smiled at this and couldn't stop the word 'endearing' from flying into his mind. He decided there and then that he didn't have it in him anymore to be cool 24/7 so his friends would just have to learn to accept him becoming mildly tolerable to everybody he met.

Carrying her through to the living room, he saw Red sitting at the piano bench and from the expression on his face; he gathered that Red wanted to talk to him. Nodding, Hyde carried Jackie up the stairs and took her into Laurie's old room where he lay her down somewhat forcefully since she was refusing to remove her arms from his neck, even in her unconscious state. Returning to the living room, Hyde sat down on the couch and shifted nervously under Red's gaze. He knew what this was about and knew that Red deserved to hear Hyde explain himself. However, Hyde didn't know what to say and had been half-hoping Red would be the one to start asking questions. No such luck.

They were both silent for so long that Hyde could have sworn the cobwebs were growing cobwebs.

"You won't bail on her again?" Red finally asked.

"Never." Hyde answered immediately.

"Then we're done." Red stated before walking out of the room and into the den, leaving Hyde confused.

"No more questions?" Hyde called out.

"I trust you." echoed through the room.

----------

LAURIE'S ROOM

"Jackie."

_Was that someone calling me? Can't a girl get some sleep!_

"Jackie."

_Wait, I know that voice. Crap, that means I have to get up._

"Jackie." Her eyes snapped open and she gazed up into a very familiar face.

"I thought it was you." she answered groggily. "Missing me already?" Jackie joked. Hyde smiled at her tussled appearance and he felt lucky to catch her in one of her rare moments of carelessness. Though, he wasn't about to comment on how she looked. Kelso had made that mistake when he screamed at the mere sight of Jackie when she had been struck down ill.

"Come on, it's time to go home." Hyde whispered to her.

Jackie groaned and decided that seduction was the only way to keep her from getting up. Putting on the act, she fingered the hem of his shirt and gave him a look that told him all that he needed to know. "Here?" Hyde questioned. She nodded. "Now?" he asked. She nodded again. Hyde smirked and leaned in to kiss her when suddenly his head snapped back and his face contorted in horror. "I don't think I can. I-I-I don't want to have sex with you!" he yelled.

"OK, say it louder!" Jackie told him. Hyde stood up and paced around the foot of the bed in confusion whereas Jackie was left feeling pretty much humiliated. Then something clicked. "Wait." Jackie said in a short tone causing Hyde to look up. "Is this one of those things where the guy stops finding the girl attractive just because she's putting on weight? Because if so, I'll tie you to that bed right now and we'll keep going until I burn off the extra weight, mister!" Jackie felt herself becoming more and more awake by the second.

"No, no Jackie. That's not- Actually that's not a bad idea." Hyde smirked allowing the true man in him to come out. But true men did not receive a marathon sex session. True men fended off a barrel of slaps from their temperamental pregnant girlfriends. "Jackie, I was kidding! Jackie- OW! Jackie!-OW! OW!!"

After a solid five minutes of bitch slapping between apologies, Jackie let her boyfriend fall to the floor and sat down on the bed and hugged a small pillow to her, allowing the feeling of being undesirable to hit her full force. "I'm fat, aren't I?" Jackie stated glumly.

Hesitantly approaching her, Hyde told her softly, "Baby, no. You are a frickin goddess." Jackie looked up at him surprised. "Don't expect to hear it again." he joked. Hyde sat down beside her and put his arm around her, drawing her into his shoulder. "All I was trying to say was that it feels weird for us to do that now that you're…" Hyde trailed off, pointing his hand to her stomach.

"What? Do you think you'll break me or something?" Jackie asked him with a slight laugh.

"Well…" Hyde started, ducking his head. "You know… how we can get a bit…" Hyde was fully blushing by this point and Jackie was loving every moment of it.

"Carried away?" Jackie finished with a huge smile covering her face. Throwing her leg over his, Jackie continued, "Steven, it won't hurt the baby by us having sex. I'm not saying we should go for 'best time ever' but we **need** to keep doing this because you cannot cut me off. I am still trying to dispel images of tying you to this bed!" Jackie exclaimed.

"That makes two of us." Hyde smirked. "OK, so we'll keep doing this. But not here. God knows what creatures Laurie brought onto this thing." Jackie laughed at this comment, picturing the endless sexual encounters that Laurie had experiences on this bed.

The pair sat there silently for a few minutes before Jackie lifted her head. "You know, Mrs. Forman put on new sheets this morning." Jackie suggested.

"And Forman performed daily exorcisms for fear of the ghosts of horniness past coming to visit." Hyde added, jumping on her train of thought.

And suddenly it was the summer of 1978 all over again. Two kids, horny, and unsupervised.

----------

THE NEXT MORNING

FORMAN DRIVEWAY

"Shh!" Jackie hissed after Hyde tripped over the lawnmower. "I think you made enough noise last night!"

"I'm surprised you heard over the banshee screams that were coming out of your mouth." Hyde bit back. "Now, come on. Let's get moving."

Leading her to the El Camino, they were about to climb in when a Porsche pulled up, blocking them in.

"Laurie's home." they sang in unison.

----------

10 MINUTES LATER

Everybody was gathered in the driveway and even Kitty had to comment. "Not that I have ever minded before, but what in heavens are you all doing here at this time?"

"I'm here for the candy."

"I'm here to see Laurie's giant boobs!"

"I'm here because I'm nothing but a big blonde baby who cries about Eric. WAH!"

"Jackie, cut it out." Hyde hissed. Jackie smiled innocently at Donna who was glaring furiously at her.

"You can't touch a pregnant lady, Donna." Jackie reminded her. Donna silently swore that she would get her revenge.

Laurie stepped forward and grasped one of Kitty's and Red's hands in each of hers. "Mommy, Daddy, this is Trevor. I'm pregnant with his baby and we're getting married!"

_Oh crap_ Hyde thought.

"WHAT?" Jackie yelled. "I am not sharing my pregnancy with a 25 year old mattress!"

Opening her mouth in offence, Laurie bit back, "For your information, Trevor and I are in love."

"Now girls calm down." Kitty interrupted. Speaking calmly, she continued, "Laurie, why don't you tell us how you two even fell in love?"

"My guess is he bought her dinner." Eric interjected.

"ERIC!!!" came the yells of 8 stunned people.

"Yeah, I'm back." Eric stated happily. Kelso strode forward and exclaimed,

"Now, hold on! First Hyde and Jackie get back together. Then she gets pregnant. Then I tell you guys that I'm moving to Chicago. Then Laurie comes back and says she is engaged and having a kid as well. And now Eric is back? Who's stealing whose thunder here?"

----------

THAT AFTERNOON

DOCTOR'S OFFICE

"I mean, what was Eric thinking coming back like that!" Jackie exclaimed as the nurse tried to check her vitals. "If you went off to some distant place and I didn't know when you were coming back only for you to pop-up one day and be a jerk about it, I'd slap the hell out of you!"

"I did, and you did." Hyde said glancing at her. Jackie mouthed an 'oh' before giving Hyde a sweet smile.

"Mr. and Mrs. Hyde? Doctor Harris asked as he entered the room.

"That's us." Hyde answered. They had agreed for appearance sake to pretend they were married since they would probably be locked up if a doctor heard about the complexity of their relationship.

"It's good to see you both. Now Jackie, have you been feeling any more nauseous or light-headed since your last check-up?" Dr. Harris asked.

"Your last check-up?" Hyde asked confused.

"Well yeah, how do you think I found out for sure?" Jackie replied. Now it was Hyde's turn to mouth an 'oh'. "I've been a lot better, doctor. The morning sickness hasn't been too bad and I haven't had any more dizzy spells thankfully."

"Sounds like you're one of the lucky ones. Most women suffer from being nauseous throughout their pregnancies." Dr. Harris told them.

"Yeah, well Jackie has the baby under strict orders not to make her reapply her makeup or else she will play Andy Gibb full blast for the rest of the pregnancy." Hyde grimaced.

"Oh Steven, you were listening!" Jackie cooed.

"Well, to be fair, it was right after you had beaten me to the ground and told me you wouldn't remove your heel from my neck until I repeated it." Hyde told her. Upon the doctor's reaction, Hyde added, "a metaphorical heel."

Dr. Harris disregarded it. "So, are you ready to see the baby?" he asked.

"Yes!" Jackie answered before he finished the sentence. Hyde just shook his head smiling but gave the doctor a nod.

"OK, I just need to make sure your cervix hasn't-"

"Excuse me." Hyde stated grabbing the doctor's arm which was mere inches from Jackie. "Do you seriously expect me to just sit here and watch you stick that in there and give her a good twirl?" Hyde asked with his voice raising.

"I assure you Mr. Hyde that this is a medical examination and I will be completely professional." Dr. Harris squeaked as he felt Hyde's grip on his arm tighten.

"Steven, just let him get it over with." Jackie groaned.

"Look, doc. I don't care how many letters come after your name. I am not letting you touch her… stuff." Hyde said, a little flustered.

"My _stuff_?" Jackie asked, bemused. "Oh, for God's sake. Doctor, would it be at all possible for a female doctor to do this part of the examination?"

"Now you're talking." Hyde smirked.

----------

20 MINUTES (AND MANY OUTBURSTS) LATER

Jackie was now having the jell smeared over her lower abdomen while Hyde sat at her side, trying to release the death grip Jackie had on his hand.

"Babe, it's alright if you're scared, but-"

"No, I'm not scared, Steven. I just don't want to have to worry about you pushing another doctor off of his chair the next time he ASKS ME TO PUT MY LEGS IN STIRRUPS!" Jackie yelled.

"Well, that's what you get when you watch every one of Fez's movie collection." Hyde snapped. "I still can't get that picture out of my head." Hyde said with a grimace.

"You know, Steven. You really need to- AHH!" Jackie's alarmed expression was not the only one. Hyde looked freaked when a sound started filling the room. A loud swishing, a thumping, a… a heartbeat. That was their baby's heartbeat.

_That ought to shut them up_ Dr. Harris thought.

Neither Hyde nor Jackie had any words at that moment. Sometimes even those who have something to say at any given moment need to spend just one moment where it's just about what they are feeling. And Jackie Burkhart and Steven Hyde were definitely feeling something at this moment.

Dr. Harris looked at the pair and smiled. They had done nothing but bicker since they arrived and seemed to have absolutely no way of communicating. But now, when the focus was off them and onto something bigger, he saw the truth in what they had. He saw that they loved each other and didn't need to show the world that they did.

_They'll be OK_ he thought.

**A/N:** So another chapter bites the dust and there is only one left. I might take a week or so to get it out because I want to do it when I have nothing like school on my mind. I haven't left Eric or Laurie or the consequences they bring in the lurch. They just weren't my priority here. Hope you liked. Review please!

Stay safe.


	11. Shaky Ground

**THE RIGHT WAY AROUND.**

Chapter 11 - Shaky Ground. 

**A/N: **Here we go again. I had planned for this to be the last chapter but everyone seems to still be enjoying this story so I have decided to carry on for a little while longer. This chapter was really difficult to write because I had to scrap the original plan for a finale so forgive me if it's a bit crappy. It's actually my least favourite that I have written so now that I have made it sound so fantastic, have a read. Few little things; Schotzie is still around and I am writing Laurie as Lisa Robin Kelly played her. BTW, someone had a nasty reaction to how one person wrote Eric and Donna so as a bit of a warning; Eric comes off somewhat like a dick in one scene but I really like his character and it is for a real reason. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing and after the crap the show spilled out in Season 8, I'm relieved to have nothing to do with the show.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

EL CAMINO

"Ugh, I swear we should have seen a specialist! I can barely make out the baby in this picture." Jackie groaned as she squinted at the sonogram picture.

"Jackie, the baby doesn't even have arms yet let alone a photogenic appearance." Hyde said sighing. Ever since they left the doctor's office, Jackie had babbled about anything and everything and even Hyde was growing irritated, despite his newfound Mother Teresa like patience when it came to her incessant chatter.

"Well, excuse me for wanting something nice for the next entry of the baby book." Jackie stated.

"Baby book?" Hyde said in shock. They had just come from their first joint doctor's appointment and she was already on her way to making a baby book. "Next entry? When the hell do you find the time to come up with all of this stuff?" Hyde queried, picturing her going to pre-natal classes and stuffing her shirt with pillows.

"You'd be surprised what an unemployed girl can get done when she spends her days hanging around the listening pit at Grooves." Jackie reminded him. "God, I need a job." she started but was cut off by Hyde bursting out into laughter. Glaring at him, Jackie smacked his arm in frustration. "I'm serious, Steven! I cannot spend the next 8 months listening to Mrs. Forman telling me how little Laurie caused so many vaginal tea-"

"Ah, ah!" Hyde interrupted loudly causing Jackie to jump. He continued, "Look, I don't want to hear the 'v' word from **your** mouth unless you want **mine** in it." Hyde told her.

"Well, you had no problem staring at it when the doctor was doing his exam." Jackie scolded.

"That was different, I was making sure he didn't start… poking." Hyde said, strangely embarrassed by this.

"Well, I sure as hell saw something poking." she joked, giving a quick glance to his pants. "I never knew a girl getting felt up by a speculum turned you on."

Hyde laughed through his teeth. "You know, this teasing thing of yours is getting to be a real drag. You should probably cut it out before we end up in the emergency room again." At this, Jackie bowed her head as she remembered one of her not so finer moments.

----------

_DECEMBER 1978_

_POINT PLACE GENERAL HOSPITAL_

"_So, um…" the nurse said between laughter, "you swallowed it whole?" In all her years of working in the ER, Nurse Sheila Parkhill couldn't recall ever coming across two people in this kind of situation._

"_Well, we were in a hurry you see and I got a little carried away and before I knew it I had accidentally swallowed it." Jackie rambled before clutching her stomach in pain. "Look, this really hurts so could you please just get it out?" Jackie ordered._

"_The only way that is coming out of you is through a stool and I can't exactly call the O.R. for this you know." Nurse Parkhill told her amusedly. "You the boyfriend?" she asked, indicating to the semi-conscious teen on the other side of the room._

"_Yeah." Hyde muttered._

_She nodded before telling Jackie she would be back in a moment with some medical students since this was such a "fascinating" case._

"_Great, just what I always wanted. To be gawked at by a bunch of virgin geeks." was Jackie's reply. Noticing Hyde's snort, she glared at him, "I'm glad you find this so funny, Steven. Especially since it is all your fault!" This comment stirred Hyde a bit._

"_My fault? He asked disbelievingly. "I wasn't the one who followed me into the bathroom and took her underwear off without removing her skirt." Hyde said, beginning to stumble on his words towards the end as he remembered the little act she had performed for him right after she had finished her Christmas cheer for him._

"_Well, maybe you weren't. But I definitely wasn't the one who wanted to try wheelbarrow position against the bathtub!" Jackie yelled._

"_Oh, you wanna do this? How about this one? I wasn't the one who stuck it in her mouth and gulped it down like it was a gummy bear!" Hyde yelled back but Jackie gasped at how bluntly he had put it._

"_I did not gulp-" Jackie began but felt something to her left and realized that the doctor had left the curtain wide open allowing the entire floor to hear their conversation. Just then, Nurse Parkhill returned with the eager med students,_

"_Ladies and gentlemen, meet the first patient I have ever encountered to swallow an entire condom."_

_----------_

"Is that never talking about it again, Steven?" she whispered as they pulled up to the driveway.

Hyde chuckled and stopped the car, ignoring Jackie's glare as he unlocked the doors. "This is my carnival, babe." Grabbing her hand, Hyde led Jackie through to the living room where Eric, Donna and Laurie sat talking. "This is new." Hyde stated as he took in the sight of Eric and Donna laughing at something Laurie had just said.

"Oh hey, how did your appointment go?" Donna asked beaming. She could barely contain the happiness she had felt ever since Eric had shown up a few hours previous. Sure, it had been a shock and she was still a little shaken, but torn between getting pissy for a little while or just accepting a good thing, she chose the latter.

"Great. You know, once Steven stopped beating up the doctor." Jackie said sarcastically. Hyde smirked feeling very proud of himself.

"He won't be going anywhere near her 'v' again." Hyde told them.

"Her 'v'?" the three asked.

"Don't ask." Jackie said yawning. "Is it possible to be getting all the pregnancy symptoms this early on? I'm tired all the time, I feel bloated and just now I was tempted to drink the martini dripping from Schotzie's dog collar." Upon Donna's look, Hyde rolled his eyes and put his arm around Jackie's shoulder. Thankful for the embrace, however out of character, Jackie rested her head on his shoulder and dozed off within moments.

With one down, the four remaining inhabitants of the room quickly began to catch each other up on what they had missed.

"So basically nothing?" Eric retorted when Donna filled him in on what he had missed out on since he had been away in Africa.

"Well I wouldn't say _nothing_." Donna said. "Your mom getting high, Hyde knocking Jackie up, and Leo getting married to a Las Vegas stripper sound like some good things to be sad about missing out on."

Hyde, however, perked up at the 's' word. "Stripper? Where'd you hear this?" Hyde asked interested.

"Leo sent my mom a postcard from Cairo and he filled us in on the big day." Eric told him. "Funny how they ended up in Egypt in less than a day and how the postcard has already arrived." The group briefly considered this before removing it from their minds. After all, the idea of Hyde and Jackie having a baby together or of Laurie being in love once seemed like foreign concepts but now they were just facts of life.

"So sis," Eric started, "you've told us all about what you did when you left Point Place, but you seem to have neglected the details of your fiancée and how you ended up in this condition." Eric smirked.

"Well we all know how she ended up in this condition." Hyde interrupted. "In fact, every man in Wisconsin could tell us exactly how she ended up in this condition."

"Ah, I've so missed our double burning on Laurie." Eric cooed sarcastically at Hyde.

Laurie smiled sweetly and replied, "The old Laurie would have given you two some form of retaliation but the new me has found solace in the humanity of forgiveness, peace, and love. I love you, brothers." Laurie said in a sincere tone and Hyde and Eric looked like they had been permanently cut off from sex right after every bit of their stash had been flushed down the toilet. Then, Laurie smirked maliciously and said, "Thought that would do the trick."

----------

FORMAN BASEMENT

CIRCLE

Eric: So here we are men. Back to where we all started.

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: The irony of this moment is not lost on me. As we gain one, we lose another. Ai, the irony. _(shakes head)_

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: You guys are looking at this all wrong. Since this is one of the last times the four of us will be in a circle, we have nothing left to hold back. So let's hear it!

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: You're totally right, man. I don't have to withhold my wisdom from the world anymore and we can say everything we were always too afraid to say. I'll go first. _(pauses in thought)_ Yeah, I got nothing. _(laughs)_

CUT TO ERIC

Eric: Yeah, that was really profound.

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: You leave him alone! You cannot come back here and insult my friend. Continue Kelso.

CUT BACK TO KELSO

Kelso: Thanks Fez. But I still got nothing.

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: OK, I got something. Forman? I hate these seats.

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: Ouch.

CUT TO ERIC

Eric: Hey, my mom picked these out years ago. You can't start complaining now.

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: No, Hyde's right. I get really sensitive when we're in the circle and this couch feels like a plank of wood in my ass. It's not cool, man.

CUT TO ERIC

Eric: You too? I can't believe you two. This place is sacred and you're mocking it. Do you know what Luke would have done if Han Solo and-

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: Oh, enough with the Star Wars crap. That isn't real Forman and you look like an idiot when you start spurting out references to it in every sentence.

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: Double ouch.

CUT TO ERIC

Eric: Oh, talking about Star Wars makes me look like an idiot but believing that beer makes us smarter than the government is somehow the Messiah speaking?

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: There's no need to be mean, Eric. We all agree that you go on about Star Wars and we all agree that Hyde is an ass who speaks nothing but crap. _(looks at Hyde)_ Sorry buddy.

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: I do not speak crap, you baboon. _(Kelso shrieks)_ If anything I am the only sane person in this freak show.

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: Oh, that is overstepping the line Hyde.

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: Oh I'm sorry Fez. I should know by now better than to insult your one and only soulmate. Go munch on a bag of M&M's.

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: _(swallowing a lump in his throat) _Ouch.

CUT TO ERIC

Eric: Oh shut up everyone! I should be getting paid a million dollars a week for all the shit I hear you guys talk about. If it's not Fez's whining, then it's Hyde's self-sabotage. And if it's not Hyde, then it's Kelso going on and on and on and on and on about his looks. Just give it a rest already.

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: You're out of line Forman. We're your friends.

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: Yeah, but Kelso let's not forget that without the mighty Eric Forman, we're all just a bunch of wasters who can't hold a group together.

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: Please stop it.

CUT TO ERIC

Eric: Well considering Kelso is moving and the rest of you are walking blind, I'd say that's a pretty fair assessment, Hyde.

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: I can't believe this is how we are spending our last circle together. I don't wanna fight.

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: Well, maybe this needs to be said Kelso. Cos I'm not feeling too affected by the high so there's no better time to say what we are really thinking.

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: Yeah, I don't feel all that different either. Are you sure this stash is good?

CUT TO ERIC

Eric: Wow, Hyde. You can't even pick up the right stuff these days. What a dad you'll make.

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: Eric, you take that back!

CUT TO ERIC

Eric: _(sensing he went too far)_ Yeah, I'm sorry Hyde. That was harsh.

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: To say the least.

CUT TO HYDE:

Hyde says nothing.

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: Maybe we should wrap this up now.

CUT TO ERIC

Eric: Maybe you shouldn't butt-in Fez.

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: What the hell is going on with you, man? Being mean to Hyde and Fez for no reason and acting like you're better than us. What's up with that?

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: I'll tell you what's up with that, Kelso. Forman here went off and left this little basement behind for bigger and brighter things and now that he's back, he feels like he really is better than us. Isn't that right Forman?

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: Eric, that is not true, is it?

CUT TO ERIC

Eric: That's crazy Hyde. I'm just calling them as I see them.

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: Then maybe you should shut up and piss off again.

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: Alright that is enough! Kelso is leaving and I do not want your petty fight to get in the way of how sad this is. Hyde, Eric, apologise at once to each other and let this be done with.

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: Whatever.

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: And there it is.

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: What was that Kelso? You want in on this.

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: No, I would just like it if my best friend could start acting like one and be the great guy Jackie keeps telling us you have been to her lately.

CUT TO ERIC

Eric: Well, to be fair, Jackie is sleeping with him and we all know what sex does to a man.

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: Stings? It always stings for me.

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: Leave her out of this. In fact, leave me out of this.

Hyde stood from the circle and marched out of the basement. As soon as he left, Eric stormed up the stairs and into the kitchen leaving Kelso to stare at his defeated friend. Sighing, Fez stood and he too walked out of the room. This left Kelso on his own to contemplate how such a solid friendship erupted like that for absolutely no reason.

"I guess we really didn't hold anything back."

----------

THE NEXT EVENING

FORMAN LIVING ROOM

Red and Hyde were being shuffled around the room by their respective partners as the women constantly rearranged every piece of furniture they could lay their hands on.

"I really wish your father had given me more warning, Jackie. It's not everyday an ex-city councilman, turned ex-con, turned grandfather-in-law, comes to my home for dinner. I feel like I'm on candid camera!" Jackie followed Kitty around the room and replied,

"Hey, I'm as surprised as you are Mrs. Forman. He just said he wanted to meet the scummy parents of the no-good burnout that knocked me up. I'm sure everything will be fine." Jackie said reassuringly.

Momentarily content with how the room looked; the two women proceeded to perfect Hyde and Red until they met standards. Hyde, shockingly, was fidgeting with his tie and was doing everything in his power to escape Jackie's hold. "Stop fidgeting!" Jackie told him which earned a pitying look from Kitty.

"Oh honey, that's not they way to do it. Offer your man a reward and he'll be as swift as a sword. That's my motto." Kitty announced before laughing.

An idea struck Jackie and she leaned forward to whisper in Hyde's ear. Whatever she said did the trick because he stopped fidgeting immediately. _Just in time_ Jackie thought as she had no sooner dusted off his jacket than the doorbell rang.

"Crap." Jackie said suddenly nervous. "How much would it take for you to say flowchart again?" she asked, turning to Hyde. He smiled at the memory of that night and the 30 after that where he had used that word to his advantage.

"Relax, babe. I can totally take him." Jackie's eyes widened at him. "Joke." Hyde whispered.

"Mr. Burkhart, it is just lovely to have you hear tonight. Have you lost weight?" Kitty asked nervously.

"Well, I spent a year and a half in prison and haven't been able to eat since my daughter told me she was pregnant, so yeah I think I have shed a few pounds. Bastard grandchildren are the fasted way to lose weight." Jack retorted.

"Dad," Jackie warned him as she felt Hyde's hand tighten in hers. "You're hardly in the position to dispense parenting knowledge."

"Burn."

There was silence for a moment. It hadn't come from Hyde or Jackie so it must have been…

"Red?" Hyde asked.

Red shrugged his shoulders. "You gotta admit, that was pretty good." Red said smiling. Whatever the reason for his surprise utterance, Jackie was thankful as it had eased the tension considerably.

"Dad, you're a guest here so how about you try and be polite? For me?" Jack knew she was playing the sweet girl routine but he also knew he had the willpower of his ex-wife when it came to margaritas so he relented.

"OK. Kitty, Red, Steven. I apologise for my rudeness and I hope this doesn't disrupt our dinner." Jack said politely.

"Nonsense, we're all friends here. Come on and I'll show you to the dining room." Kitty said, ever the hostess. Red, Hyde and Jackie remained in the living room for a little longer.

"Anybody here who doesn't wanna pound that guy into the ground?"

"Nope." "Hell no."

----------

FORMAN DINING ROOM

20 MINUTES LATER

It had been only 30 seconds since somebody had last spoken but to Jackie and Kitty, it felt more like 30 years. Red and Hyde however, were happy to dodge every question Jack fired in their direction and the way he was squirming just then was better than sex. Maybe that was a stretch but it was pretty damn well enjoyable.

"Sweetheart…" Jack began

"I'm the only one who calls her sweetheart." Hyde interrupted causing Jack to laugh nervously.

"Honey…"

"That too." Hyde stated once again interrupting him.

"Um…"

"Yep, that's mines too." Hyde said, willing to carry on doing this for the rest of the meal. Jack glared at Hyde and Jackie implored both men to back down.

"Daddy, what is it?" Jackie asked her father sweetly.

Jack cleared his throat and approached her. "I wanted to know what you and Steven are planning to do. I assume that you will be getting married."

"Sure we will, Dad. Right after I start borrowing Donna's clothes." Jackie told him.

Hyde wanted to laugh but upon Red's look he kept his mouth shut. Jack continued, "Jacqueline…"

"Marriage isn't on the cards right now." Jackie stated firmly to her father's surprise. Someday sure, but not now. Steven owns the store and his dad is rich so money won't be an issue. The mansion is always empty and even if you sell it, Steven and I could find a new place. Don't worry about me. Or the baby." Jackie told him confidently.

"I'll take care of her, Mr. Burkhart." Hyde said giving Jackie a small smile.

"I think that covers everything, don't you think Jack?" Red asked condescendingly.

_Thank you_ Jackie mouthed to Red who smiled secretly.

----------

TWO HOURS LATER

FORMAN BASEMENT

Jackie slowly walked down the steps in search of her boyfriend and was relieved to find him sitting on the couch in silence.

"Steven." Hyde apparently hadn't heard her come down the stairs because he shot up as soon as he heard his name being called and this left Jackie a bit startled. "Hey, what's wrong?" Jackie asked, concerned. She moved to the couch and pulled him down to sit next to her.

"Nothing's wrong. Just thinking." Hyde told her flippantly. Neither of them believed what he had said but Jackie had come to learn that the safest way to get Hyde to open up was to be there with him. Edging closer to him, Jackie curled up on the couch and leaned into his side, allowing him to loosely wrap his arm around her.

The pair lay like this for so long that Jackie began to forget what was troubling him and felt sleep take hold of her. "Jackie?" This brought her back and she focused her eyes on him.

"Yeah?" she replied softly. He was silent again and Jackie was becoming very confused. Once again, she let him take his time.

"Jackie?" Hyde asked again.

"Yes, Steven?"

"I'm going to be a good father, you know." Hyde told her earnestly. Jackie removed herself from his warm embrace and looked at him head on.

"Of course you are Steven! You are going to piss this baby off beyond the point of no return and that's what every good father needs to be able to do." Hyde didn't know if she was making a joke or if she thought he wasn't being serious but he had to be sure she understood what he was saying. Even if it had been said in the heat of the moment, Eric's words had rung some truth in Hyde's ears.

"_Wow, Hyde. You can't even pick up the right stuff these days. What a dad you'll make."_

"Jackie, I want to be there for this kid. Not the way Bud, or your dad or even W.B. were there but really there. I…" Hyde trailed off not even sure what he wanted to say yet.

"You want our child to know that you love it?" Jackie offered in the hopes of easing his anxiety. Hyde nodded his head slowly. "You wanna know something, Steven?" Jackie asked him. "I am terrified of having this baby." she revealed.

Hyde looked at her, confused. "But you were so sure you wanted this…"

"I do!" Jackie interrupted. "I mean the actual raising the baby part. I can get through the pregnancy and the labour with drugs and sex but the actual parenting? I don't have a clue what to do!" Jackie exclaimed and Hyde suddenly felt idiotic for worrying that his child might be disappointed in him when he had neglected to think about having to actually take care of it before it could vocalize any thoughts.

Hyde laid his head back on the couch and laughed softly. "This will be fun."

----------

A WHILE LATER

Jackie and Hyde had not done much talking for the last half hour but a thought suddenly struck Hyde.

"Hey, you never told me what you meant when you said you wanted a job." Hyde recalled.

"Well I tried but if I remember correctly, you laughed at the mention of it and told the story of our condom incident." Jackie told him irritably.

"So tell me now." Hyde offered. "I doubt I'll be moving any time soon."

Jackie fixed her eyes on his sleepy, bare expression and a smile began to form. The clear eyes and rumpled clothes were comforting to her for some reason and she placed herself back into his embrace. "Well, obviously it would be part-time because of all my doctor's appointments and the fact that I would be taking maternity leave soon after I started." Jackie waited for Hyde's response and saw that he was thinking about something and would not be giving her a reply anytime soon. "If I could choose anything I would go back to my public access show but Pam Macey got my spot with "Slut or Not?". Which I started, by the way!" Jackie sighed and rested her head beside Hyde's so that they were both staring at the ceiling. "I don't know what I'll actually go for."

"You could be the cashier at the muffler shops." Hyde said out of nowhere.

"Huh?" Jackie asked him.

"Makes sense. Red hates people, you love people. Red hates helping people, you love helping people. And you seem to be the only person who can help Red with tools. Add to that, you'd be working with money all day long." Jackie paused for a moment before replying,

"Muffler shop it is."

---------

ERIC'S ROOM

"I'm sorry."

"Me too."

"I didn't mean…"

"Yeah, me neither."

"Are we cool?"

"Yeah, we're cool."

"Cool."

----------

FORMAN KITCHEN

"Forman and I are cool." Hyde said walking through the kitchen and out the sliding door.

"Cool." Jackie responded while eating a sandwich coated in gravy.

---------

FEZ AND KELSO'S APARTMENT

"Hey."

"Hey." the two of them chorused.

"Sorry about before…"

"We know. It's cool." they both said in unison.

"So are we alright?"

"Absolutely. Forget about it." they said together.

"Great. You guys spend way too much together."

"We know." the two of them said.

----------

FORMAN KITCHEN

"Fez and Kelso are fine." Hyde said, walking through the room and down to the basement.

"Cool." Jackie responded while cutting through a stack of bananas and smearing them onto pancakes.

----------

CIRCLE

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: So can we try this again? I leave in a couple of hours and I don't wanna remember that last one.

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: Well if this stash is better you won't remember this one. _(smirks)_

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: Kelso, it is going to be so strange without you around. Who will I room with? Who will I eat with? Who will I bathe with?

CUT TO ERIC

Eric: There's always Fenton.

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: Once was enough, thank you.

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: You can always have Jackie, Fez.

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: Really?

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: No!

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: Man, I'm gonna miss this so much. It won't be the same without you guys around.

CUT TO ERIC

Eric: We'll come visit you, buddy. Besides, you're going to work at the Playboy club!

CUT TO FEZ

Fez: Oh great. He will be surrounded by naked, beautiful women, Eric will be with Donna, Hyde will be with Jackie, and Red will be with Miss Kitty. This is just sad.

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: You know what's really sad? We almost let real life tear us apart. That's why the circle is sacred, man. Nothing makes sense here and we shouldn't get into fights. We should talk about the things that matter. Like there is this car this one guy made. It's got fibre glass engines and it runs on water, man!"

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: You are blowing my mind!

CUT TO ERIC

Eric: A car that runs on water? That's so cool! Hey, have you mentioned that before Hyde?

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: Who knows, man? Maybe I did but the government bugged the table so that they can record everything we say and use it against us. It's all connected!

CUT TO KELSO

Kelso: To what?

CUT TO HYDE

Hyde: To beer.

CRANE SHOT OF THE FOUR OF THEM

All: To beer!

----------

THE HUB

Strangely, after everything the six friends had been through, the one thing they had never counted on coming between was reality. Two of them had nearly come to blows over unresolved anger about life decisions and another one was faced with the dilemma of being a young mother. Eric, Donna, Kelso, Hyde, Jackie and Fez had always managed to escape reality but that wasn't possible anymore. They were about to lose one of their own to reality and it just sucked. In just a few short minutes, Michael Kelso would hop in his van and drive off to his new life and in the process, would be leaving behind five people who had helped shape who he has become. But that was in a few minutes. For the time being, it was still the six of them. They had been six before Hyde had a crush on Donna, before Eric and Donna got together, before Jackie and Hyde got together, before Kelso had a baby, and before Fez had gone from odd to endearingly perverted.

But now, Hyde no longer had a crush on Donna, and Eric and Donna had gotten together, as had Jackie and Hyde, and Kelso had a daughter and Fez was getting hornier by the day. And they were about to become a group of five.

The six left the Hub and stood on the pavement, looking awkwardly at one another and waiting for somebody to make the first move.

Ever the impatient one, Jackie stepped forward. "Come here, you." Jackie said to Kelso. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck and told him, "I am counting on you to teach my goddaughter that looks are all that matter." The two broke apart and smiled at each other, feeling all the history that there was among them. "Bye, Michael." Jackie said softly before stepping back beside Hyde. Hyde smiled at her and for the first time, she saw he held no residual jealousy towards Kelso. _Ironic that now he gets over it, huh?_ Jackie thought.

Turning to Donna, Kelso said, "I promise I won't touch anything."

"Shut up." Donna said launching herself at him.

"Big D!" Kelso shouted when Donna wrapped him in a hug. "Thanks for the flash." Kelso whispered causing her to laugh. She gave him a bittersweet smile and that was her goodbye.

Kelso stepped up to Eric and Hyde and the three of them were preparing for their manly goodbye when Hyde grabbed Kelso into a fierce hug and Eric followed suit. "Thanks for being such a pain in the ass." Hyde joked. Kelso smiled and pulled away from the two of them. Only one left.

"No tears." Fez told him, his eyes already glistening. Kelso gave him a tight hug and finally pulled away.

"People make fun of how weird you are Fez, and of how weird our friendship is but… it's been fun. You've been fun."

The goodbyes had been said and the five prepared to say goodbye to the one. "Well, I'm glad this isn't awkward." Eric said dryly and the gang let out a nervous laugh.

"Hey Michael, you'll come back when the baby's born, right?" Jackie asked hopefully.

"Totally. I'm not letting Forman walk off with the pool." Kelso said oblivious.

"Kelso!" Eric and Hyde shouted.

"What pool?" Jackie demanded.

"I'll tell you later, babe." Hyde said sweetly but Jackie remained suspicious.

"Well this is just getting depressing so I'm gonna go now. I'll call you guys and you know, I'll visit."

The rest was kind of a blur for the five but somehow they ended up back in Eric's kitchen. They hadn't been back to the basement yet and were in no hurry to. Hyde had gone to Grooves on the walk back but it turned out he had another place in mind.

----------

ROAD TO CHICAGO

"Oh man," Kelso groaned as he heard a police siren behind him. Checking his mirror, Kelso was confused when he saw a black car pull up behind him. Moments later, Hyde appeared at his window.

"Hi, buddy." Hyde aid gleefully.

"Hyde? You're a cop? Man, they'll let anybody join." Kelso said, once again oblivious.

"I'm not a cop, Kelso. I just swiped that siren from your cop car Fez and I borrowed last year. Besides I wanted to talk to you about something." Hyde said turning serious.

"OK…" Kelso mumbled.

"It's really important to Jackie that you are there when the baby is born. And you know…" Hyde gestured so that Kelso could figure out the rest.

"I'll be there, Hyde. Don't worry. Besides, I have to make sure my name is still in the running for godfather." Kelso joked.

"You're name won't be in the running Kelso." Hyde sighed. Kelso looked hurt.

"You're not even-"

"I already made you godfather." Hyde interrupted and Kelso's eyes widened before he broke out into a huge smile. "It's not like I'd ask anyone else." Hyde told him in as nice a tone as he could muster. He could not remember the last 'Hyde' thing he had done what with all the good deeds he had been performing.

"Thanks Hyde."

Hyde shook his head lightly. "But you have gotta show up when he's born. And you can't think this is like being best man where you get to screw the godmother." Hyde warned him.

"Hey, I promise." Kelso swore.

"Alright then. I'll see you in July." Hyde stated, thankful for the private goodbye he was getting with his old friend. Things would be strange now that he was gone. _Things would be normal which is what would be strange _Hyde thought, confusing himself.

"I'll see you in July."

After Kelso had driven off, Hyde drove back to Point Place after making a quick stop at a little store. Things were about to get even more interesting…

_To be continued._

----------

**A/N: **I had to redeem the circle because there was no way I could leave it with them all fighting. That was just my event of the chapter because I felt like the focus could be taken off Jackie and Hyde for a while and onto something else that Hyde was having a hard time with e.g. his friend leaving abruptly and then coming back without warning. It was difficult to write this time around so I would love feedback.

Stay safe.


	12. Baby Friendly

**THE RIGHT WAY AROUND.**

Chapter 12 – Baby Friendly. 

**A/N: **Sorry for taking so long to update but I am back and ready to give you all some good J/H entertainment. Jackie may be a bit early on to have pregnancy cravings and hormone changes but that just makes it funnier to write in my opinion

BTW, I'm referring to Hyde as Kitty's son because that's really what he is. Thanks.

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing and after the crap the show spilled out in Season 8, I'm relieved to have nothing to do with the show.

----------

FORMAN BASEMENT

"So, explain this to me again?" Hyde asked his girlfriend who was currently dashing around the room with a tape measure and enough colour schemes to customize her own rainbow.

"Like I said," Jackie started while beating against the wall beneath the stairs, "we need to start making this place more baby-friendly. I am on a clock and I cannot spend the next few months lying around on a couch watching game shows. Need I remind you of what happened the last time I did that?" Jackie asked him knowingly causing Hyde to get caught up in the memories of summer days gone by. She sensed his train of thought and snapped her fingers in front of his eyes, breaking him out of his trance. "You can drool over my body later, Steven." Jackie told him crossly. "But for now I need you to start building. I'm thinking… Aladdin or Cinderella or-"

"Or anything involving a princess?" Hyde interrupted with a fake smile. "Because we can go right ahead and smear my blood over the wall and see which is more horrifying for the kid." Hyde told her sharply. Jackie strode over to him with her arms crossed and looked him straight on. This seemed to have a bit more of an effect on him but he quickly regrouped and formed a similar stance. "Jackie…" Hyde said in a sweet voice. "Surely you want what is best for our child?" he asked smiling softly at her.

"Steven…" Jackie said in an equally sweet voice. "Surely you want what is best for your sex life?" she asked him innocently. Hyde's smile appeared to freeze at this comment as his eyes bulged slightly. Jackie smiled victoriously. "Just what I thought." she stated and began walking up the stairs for her quarter afternoon 2-course meal. "And all these years people have thought _I_ was the weak one." Jackie echoed.

Hyde, who had dismissed it as empty threat, was now left alone in the basement and thought back to when Jackie had redecorated his room into an abyss of pink fluff and how it had eventually won him over. Unbeknownst to her and just about everyone else, he still had a lavender scented candle tucked away under a floorboard in case of emergencies like, the power was cut or he forgot to change his boxers four days in a row. Hyde shuddered. _That was just nasty last time._

Walking into his room, Hyde stood at his bed in deep thought for a moment before shutting the door and pushing his tiny cot against it. Content that he wouldn't be intruded on, he knelt down beside his wardrobe and began to feel around the gap beneath it. "Aha." Hyde muttered quietly as he grasped what he was looking for. Pulling out a long rectangular box and checking the contents were in good condition, he thanked the person who inspired him to buy this after Kelso left and before things with the baby got so crazy that he didn't even have enough time to get dressed in the mornings. Hyde got up and walked over to his case where many thought he kept his sunglasses but was actually where he kept his secret stash. Not the good kind of stash, but the kind that would get his kid through college and out of the house by the age of 18. The kind of stash that he had been saving ever since the store had begun to make good money. Once upon a time he had small plans for this money i.e. booze, weed and lens cleaner, but of course life got in the way and now he had to be careful with how much he spent, what he spent it on and where it was all going. "When did life get so complicated and serious?" Hyde asked himself.

_Probably right around the time you knocked your girlfriend up._

"Oh, don't you start again." Hyde warned his mind.

----------

FORMAN KITCHEN

Dinner at the Formans' was always the biggest event of the day for Kitty Forman as it was usually the time when the latest piece of drama would be discussed. And with her daughter home, engaged and pregnant and her son back from Africa and her other son also having a baby, Kitty was ensuring this meal had an extra bit of spice so that nothing would be held back.

"For God's sake Kitty." Red grumbled impatiently. "We're not in Geneva here so hurry up and serve the food. Eric's not getting any heavier." Eric frowned but was also too consumed by hunger to defend himself.

"Yeah, I think Eric lost the ability to gain weight when he lost his ass." Laurie interjected.

"Really? See, I thought it was when you lost your virginity but who knows when that happened." Eric bit back earning a glare from Laurie. "Hey mom, you always said Laurie was screaming a lot at night when she was a baby. You didn't by any chance notice another person in the room?" Eric queried while smirking at his sister.

"Enough!" Red yelled. "You two have been back for 5 seconds and already you are behaving like a couple of dumbasses. Just give it a rest and eat your food. If we ever see it, that is." Red finished quietly but not quietly enough.

"Do not rush me Red Forman." Kitty scolded him. "I am still recovering from Pastor Dave telling the congregation that I gave him food poisoning. _Food poisoning!_ What does that freelance hippy know about cooking a sausage. I mean, really-"

"Kitty!" Red interrupted before his wife became even more hysterical. Kitty soon calmed down enough to finish pouring the drinks and the fivesome began to eat at their meals. Kitty, however stopped eating as she took in the sight before her of her kids and husband eating dinner in peace and she immediately felt her eyes begin to water. She wiped her eyes as swiftly as possible but this action still provoked concerned looks from the other four people around the table.

"Mom, are you OK?" Eric asked.

Kitty smiled at Laurie, Hyde, Eric and finally Red and replied, "I'm fine Eric. I'm really fine." Kitty said with conviction. Not wishing to tarnish this moment with snide comments or any comments at all, she quickly moved the topic of conversation to Laurie's impending nuptials and a question that had been burning into Kitty's mind for quite some time. "Sweetheart, as excited as I am to see you getting your life together…" she started slowly for fear of sounding too callous, "…I was just thinking that we should go over what you will be wearing for the ceremony in case you get a bit too carried away with tradition." Kitty finished smiling while Laurie considered her mothers' not-so-subtle comment.

"What she means is that we don't want heckling and giggling following you down the aisle if you decide to wear something white." Eric interrupted 'helpfully.'

"Why not? I mean she'll already be getting whistling from all the men in the church." Hyde stated to Eric and the pair shared a laugh. Laurie again glared in their direction.

"Don't worry Hyde. I mean your dad won't be whistling since sleeping with your mom has probably drained the sex drive right out of him." Laurie said smirking at him.

Hyde faked offence. "Laurie, that hurts me. Now I'm gonna have to go some place where your voice doesn't haunt me. I guess that rules out every motel room within a continental radius." Hyde stated, earning a kick from Red.

"Wow Hyde, I didn't know you had it in you. I guess my absence has helped you grow a pair." Laurie told him while downing the last of her wine.

"Oh, you've know idea what your absence has done for me Laurie." Hyde told her, preparing to give her the best burn of the year. "Why just a few weeks ago, Jackie and I were in your room and you'll never guess what happened." Laurie froze as she slowly began to look at him and her face contorted in horror.

"NO!!"

"Oh yes." Hyde said with the most satisfied look of his life.

"Now Steven, you cut that out!" Kitty told him before Laurie coated their dinner with some stomach lining. "Why are you so dirty?" she asked him as if just taking in his appearance.

"It's my nature." Hyde replied while shoveling his food down.

"Ok… what's going on with Jackie?" Kitty asked him with genuine interest.

"She's spending the day with Donna and then she's off on a rescue mission." Hyde revealed.

"To rescue who?" Kitty queried.

----------

FEZ'S APARTMENT

"_Oh Kelso! And you came and you gave without taking! But I sent you away, oh Kelso!"_

Fez's awful croons were not only distracting the neighbours but were also causing his furniture to be sprayed with every piece of food in his mouth as he sat swaying on the couch wrapped in a blanket. Depressing music and binge eating was the result of life without Kelso, and Fez finally understood why Eric had been such a mess for the two summers he was without Donna.

The coffee table was scattered with images of Kelso and notes that he had written. One that Fez had found particularly touching was held tightly in his hand and it read '_We're need milk._' "Oh Kelso, you always knew what I needed." Fez cried. "AH!" he screamed when there was a persistent pounding on the door. Trusting his gut instinct that it was his big boobed, long lost love who had finally tracked him down, Fez shrugged the blanket off his shoulders and flipped the table onto its legs before rushing into the bathroom and checking his appearance. The knocking continued and Fez made his way to the door preparing to greet the woman who would fulfill all his needs. And he had _plenty_ of needs. Swinging the door open, Fez was disappointed to find Jackie and Donna standing there. "Dammit, you two are not my new sex toys. Unless…"

"No!" the pair quickly shouted, amazed that nothing could quash his perverseness.

"Then I have no use for you." Fez told them in a short tone and resumed his spot on the couch.

"Oh Fezzie…" Jackie cooed as she hesitantly sat down next ho him. "We can't leave you alone in this place alone. Can we Donna?" Jackie asked her friend who was towering above the pair of them..

"No, we cannot." Donna answered firmly

"And **she** doesn't know what to do with herself now that nobody is peeping out of her closet. Isn't that right Donna?" Jackie continued as part of their rehearsed conversation.

"I'm like a lone wolf at night." Donna told Fez.

"And it's not like she gets a lot of male attention as it is, right Donna?" Jackie asked.

"That is righ- wait, WHAT?" Donna questioned.

"Well, you agreed to let me say it earlier." Jackie said to her friend who looked pretty pissed off.

"_No._ What I said was, 'Sure Jackie. That'll get Fez out of the house'." Donna reminded her while rolling her eyes.

"Eh, don't be so literal." Jackie said waving it off. Donna swore to herself that she would take up smoking by the time Jackie gave birth if she couldn't find someone to pummel soon. "Now Fez, you don't seem Michael locked away from society. He's out there living his life and you should be too." Jackie told him imploringly.

"But Kelso was my life!" Fez cried out. "He was my friend, my roommate, my confidante, my beautiful tormentor, my-"

"OK Fez." Jackie said quickly standing up. "I'm trying to be supportive here but if you start crying over a broken heart, I'm gonna have to let Donna loose on you."

"Oh, please do!" Donna begged. "I'm going crazy not being able to hit Jackie anymore." Jackie frowned at her friend. She was going to have to be an even bigger bitch from now on just for that. _This should be fun_ Jackie thought to herself as she imagined the free torment she could inflict on others during the course of her pregnancy. Clearing her head, Jackie returned to the task at hand.

"Look Fez, we're not saying forget about him. We all miss him so why not come over to the basement and spend some time with us? We can talk about all the good times we had with Michael." Jackie looked around her. "In a sanitary way."

"I-… I don't know." Fez shook his head sadly but slowly turned to the two girls with a hopeful look. "Could we talk about the time he glued himself to the mailman and had to go with him to deliver all the mail in Point Place? Ah, good one Kelso." Fez said smiling. Donna and Jackie laughed at this and smiled at their success.

"Sure we can Fez." Donna said and pulled him to his feet. Wrapping an arm around his shoulder, she led him to the door and continued, "We can even look at the photo of Kelso and the mailman trying to run in opposite directions away from the greyhound.

"Poor dog never saw that package of beach rocks coming." Jackie said sadly.

----------

MAIN STREET

"Fez? Fez, can you hear me?" Donna questioned as Fez walked solemnly down the street and ignored every word that either woman fired at him. This had been going on for almost five minutes when Donna finally snapped. "How could you do that to him, Jackie?"

Jackie was taken aback. "I didn't do anything to him Donna. It was the baby." Jackie said while looking at her stomach. "You didn't mean to do that now, did you baby?" she asked rubbing her non-existent bump.

Donna glared at her. "Jackie, the baby is barely an inch long. I doubt it made you grab the cotton candy out of Fez's hand and push him into a puddle when he tried to get it back!" Jackie's cheeks reddened in embarrassment.

"Well, it has Steven for a father so it has probably inherited his penchant for thieving." Jackie hissed and then realized what she had said. "Oh my God. I'm such a bitch!" Jackie said in astonishment.

Donna rolled her eyes. "Well I don't think that's all the baby's doing." Jackie gasped in offence but Donna decided that if Jackie could shrug off offending remarks then so could she. "Look, how about you just apologise to Fez so that he can speak again.

Jackie narrowed her eyes at Donna, fully aware at how entertaining it must be for her to see the former princess of Point Place begging for forgiveness from a foreigner. "I am… I'm…"

"Yes Jackie?" Donna pushed.

"I'm sorry Fez! OK, I'm sorry for stealing your candy and for pushing you into a puddle." Jackie said quickly looking for any changes in his behaviour. No such luck. "Um…" Jackie was scrambling for something else to say. "I'll buy you some more cotton candy?" she asked hopefully. Once again, no change. Then an idea struck her. "I'll let you see the top of the label of my bra." Jackie said with a smile. "From a distance."

Fez slowly turned to her with a face like a child on Christmas morning. "That is all you had to say my princess!" Fez told her and he proceeded to break into his '_I'm going to see a bra'_ dance which was pretty much the same as his _'I'm going to do it'_ dance.

----------

FORMAN DRIVEWAY

Fez, Donna and Jackie strode over to the Vista Cruiser and discussed what they should do now to keep Fez's spirits up. "I would love to see Miss Kitty. She always knows how to get me in the right mood." he said in his trademark perverted tone.

Jackie stared at him uneasily. "Yeah, I'm not so sure that's a good idea. How about we go watch TV in the basement with Steven?" Jackie suggested.

"But not with Kelso." Fez said shaking his head sadly.

"Fez…" Donna said softly.

"I'm fine." Fez said plastering on a smile. "We should go and have fun. There are enough memories of Kelso in that room to last a lifetime. Let us go!" Fez ordered and the girls followed suit behind him as he descended the steps.

----------

FORMAN BASEMENT

"_Let us go!"_ echoed through the room as Hyde heard Fez and some other people walk down the steps to the basement. "Dammit." Hyde muttered as he shot up. This place was a mess and he knew what Jackie's reaction would be when she saw it. The door opened. _Here we go_ Hyde thought.

"…We can bask in all the reminders of- AH!!!" Fez screamed once he took in the sight of the basement. Donna ran in behind him and she too stopped dead in her tracks once she saw the damage that had been inflicted onto their sanctuary. Jackie finished descending the steps and saw Fez before she saw the room.

"Fez? What's wr-" Jackie stopped speaking as she gazed around her and for anybody who had ever known Jackie Burkhart, they would know that she had never gone on this long without finishing a sentence. Finally her gaze rested on her boyfriend who was standing nervously on the other side of the room.

"I didn't think you guys would be back so soon so I haven't really gotten this all cleared up." Hyde coughed as he awaited the inevitable kicks to the shins or the laughter and ridicule he was sure to receive for his actions.

Inside the basement; the record player, the coffee table, the lawn chair, the couch, the washer, the deep freeze, the rug, the set-up under the stairs, the television and Hyde's chair had been removed as had every memory of growing up in this basement and this was too much change for Fez to handle at the moment, causing him to bolt from the room.

Donna sensed that this was yet another 'Jackie and Hyde' moment which meant she had to make herself scarce. "Maybe I should go catch Fez before he launches himself into the path of an incoming bus." Donna joked and ran out of the room.

As had been happening quite often recently, Jackie and Hyde found themselves alone in this room and neither was speaking. The reason for this could be that neither knew what to say, or it could be that the basement was now half painted an ocean blue colour, uncut pieces of cream carpet were scattered on the floor, stencils of several Disney characters were leaning against the wall and there was a newly furnished crib where the coffee table and the couch used to be. It could also be because there was now a rocking chair in place of Hyde's chair. However, if one was looking to explain the look of awe on Jackie's face and her choked up expression, it's doubtful that the first reason would be chosen.

Jackie slowly took a step forward and brushed her fingers along the newly painted walls which were obviously unfinished and then walked gently along the pieces of cream carpet which had yet to be fitted until she reached the crib, which actually was finished. She knew it was finished because inside lay a black blanket with 'Zeppelin' etched in white marker. Jackie lifted the blanket and ran her hands softly over the writing and the complete look of serenity on Hyde's face made him realize that he hadn't counted on Jackie actually liking his work.

"It's not finished." Hyde said at last. Jackie looked up. "I mean the blanket, that's just for now so there was something to cover the wood. We'll need a real blanket."

"No!" Jackie said quickly surprising the both of them. "I love it," she spoke much more softly. Hyde smiled weakly, feeling relief wash over him that she didn't have a barrage of negative comments about the design and colouring. Jackie held onto the blanket tightly as she walked slowly around the room, taking everything in. She fingered the stencil of Cinderella and Aladdin and let out a small laugh.

"I sort of took your suggestions to heart." Hyde told her. "But we're gonna have to butch up the drawings you know. I'm thinking the Hulk 'cos he could wipe the floor with a magic carpet." Jackie remained silent as she prepared herself for the last remaining feature she had yet to get a feeling for. The rocking chair. Walking silently over to the chair, Jackie let out a small laugh as she imagined what he must have gone through in order to remove his chair and put this in its place.

"Can I?" she asked him, signaling to the chair. Hyde nodded and held the chair in place so that she could sit down on it without having her morning sickness christening the new carpet. Once she was settled comfortably, Hyde removed his hands from the chair and rested them on her shoulders, massaging her gently. Jackie leaned her head on his right arm as she looked down at what she had been holding in her hands throughout this experience, imagining what she would be holding in it within a few months.

Hyde wondered how it must have looked to someone watching them as they were looking at an old, poorly designed blanket as if it were an actual baby. However the only person that was watching them was the woman who had sat in that very chair everyday with her two children and who was now the mother to whoever came into her house. Part of her was tempted to let the pair enjoy this moment but the stronger part told her that she should at least be able to remember this experience perfectly.

_FLASH!_

"Oh, Mrs. Forman!" Jackie groaned with a slight laugh. "I look awful right now so promise me you will destroy that picture." Kitty chuckled.

"No such luck sweetie. This one is going right into the album." Kitty started laughing and ran back up the stairs to the kitchen.

Hyde and Jackie both smiled at how crazily loveable that woman had become. "Well, at least there will finally be some good looking people in that album." Jackie stated jokingly. However, she was still amazed at what Hyde had pulled off here in the space of 12 hours and how he had managed to capture perfectly what she had always envisioned as her child's nursery. "Steven…" Jackie started but Hyde put up a hand.

"Don't start asking questions. Just enjoy it." Hyde told her. As happy as he was that she was so in love with the new nursery, he was not willing to tell her what he was feeling, when he felt it and what made him feel it. Some things would never change and Hyde's reluctance to speak about emotions was just one of those things. However, Jackie's persistence was another one of those things.

"I just wanted to know how you did all this so quickly." Jackie said to him. "I mean you must have worked at this all day." Hyde nodded and figured it wouldn't hurt to tell her this part.

"Well Red helped. But really it was just tossing a bunch of crap from one place to another place and throwing some paint on the walls. Hardly a miracle." Jackie smiled at him and stood up from the chair, placing the blanket back into the crib. She sighed to herself, contented. Jackie turned back to him and placed her arms around his neck, pulling him down for a kiss. All notions of talking were forgotten as Hyde responded and captured her lips for the first time that day. Once upon a time all they did was make out and have sex and then repeat it when necessary but now they managed to last all day without kissing, yet still being able to feel the passion they had been feeling for what felt like years. But this passion wasn't natural or a part of fate. It was something they made between them and something they had fought to hold onto through all the shit. Their friends may have seen them as horny and nothing else for kissing for so much of their time together but the truth was that as kiss was how they showed what they were feeling and how they allowed the other person to see that their passion for each other was always growing.

Regardless of passion, feelings and love, Jackie and Hyde still spent most of their time wanting each other and after sharing their first kiss of the day, they decided to christen the carpet with something a whole lot more enjoyable than morning sickness.

----------

FEZ'S APARTMENT

"I apologise, Hyde." Fez said to his dear friend who sat on the chair across the counter from him. "Ai, I did not mean to be so crazy when I saw it but it was a big surprise. And not the good kind of surprise either." Fez said with another leer to which Hyde gave him a grin.

"Don't worry about it, man. Time for a change." Hyde said with a nod. He was still growing accustomed to calling it the nursery and not the basement. Even though it was far from finished, saw no traces of the former haunt and feared what Jackie would do to the place once she was finished with it. He was picturing an image of her riding on Fluffycakes through a mall on the ceiling and teddy bears scattered anywhere she could put them. It would be like a… baby's room.

_Well, duh! _Hyde's inner voice said.

Hyde continued, "Speaking of change-"

"I was not speaking of change." Fez interrupted.

"Well you are speaking about it now." Hyde stated.

"Speaking about change?" Fez questioned.

"Speaking of change," Hyde started again causing Fez to sit down from dizziness, "I'm gonna need your help with something I'm planning for Jackie. It's pretty big and I don't want to screw it up."

"Oh! Are you going to propose?" Fez asked excitedly.

Hyde looked confused. "No," he told him straightly, "well not yet." Fez's eyes lit up again but Hyde was quick to quash this train of thought. "Down boy! I'm not proposing to Jackie _yet_. I've got something else in store for her that I want her to be happy about and I need your help to keep her distracted while I get this planned. Can you do that for me?" Hyde asked him.

"You can count on my, little buddy." Fez told him sweetly but Hyde looked like he was ready to laugh. "What?" Fez asked him crossly but Hyde simply walked out in laughter. "It always worked when Kelso said it." Fez said to himself.

----------

HYDE'S ROOM A.K.A. THE ONLY REFUGE FROM BABY CRAP

"So, Steven?" Jackie asked from her sprawled out position on the cot. Hyde looked up from his seat on the ground so she continued, "Where did you get all that stuff for the nursery?"

He pointed his pen upwards and told her, "Red had put it all in the attic so we brought it down while you were out all day. For an old man, he's pretty strong." Hyde commented.

Jackie nodded and asked her other question. "And what about the couch, the TV. Your chair." Jackie gave him a small smile. "Where did you put all that?" she asked softly.

"Someplace safe." Hyde told her. He turned around so that they were face to face and continued, "Don't worry about where I moved the furniture."

"But your chair…" Jackie questioned

"…is fine." Hyde assured her. He hoped that she would figure out his vagueness meant he wasn't going to tell her the specifics. She would find it all out soon enough.

Jackie sighed. "Fine, fine, I can take a hint."

"You can?" Hyde asked sarcastically earning a playful slap on the head.

"But one thing I really want to know… is why now?" Jackie asked him sincerely. "I doubt you just did this to get a head start on the baby stuff. What's going on?" Hyde knew her question was out of pure interest and not her simply being her nosy self. Sighing to himself, Hyde wondered how he could explain this to her without being probed with more questions. He decided they could build to the truth as they always did so he started off,

"I did it because it was time for a change." This was true. But it wasn't the whole truth and Jackie knew that. And Hyde knew Jackie knew that so he just waited for her to probe further. It was odd how he was a man who didn't relish talking about feelings but somehow her unwavering persistence made him feel more at ease when disclosing things.

"A change?" she asked simply.

"Well yeah. I mean getting high in a basement is all well and good but it's hardly the kind of thing I want our kid around. I think it would be a little bit sad for someone's parents to start off their child's life by not doing their best for them. Jesus, my house used to feel like the sewers." Hyde said in reflection.

"Smelled like it to." Jackie said but she quickly gave Hyde a sweet smile so that he wouldn't get irritated.

So far Hyde had not said anything false. He had wanted a change and a basement was not the most sanitary place for a baby. "And you know. We're not kids anymore. We're all living our own lives now and I doubt we'll all be hanging around the basement as much."

"That's true." Jackie agreed. "And I guess this will be good for Laurie's baby to use as well.

Hyde looked up at her questioningly and wasn't sure what he thought of his baby sharing the same space as Laurie's. But he and Jackie had recently had sex on Laurie's bed so he figured they were already contaminated.

Hyde stopped his wandering thoughts and decided it was time to tell the big reason for changing the basement. "And you know… it's…it's not really the same around here anymore." Hyde told her in a sad voice.

Jackie cocked her head. "Since Michael left?" she asked in a whisper. Hyde slowly nodded and Jackie sighed quietly. She had figured he had taken Kelso's departure harder than he was letting on and it didn't come as a shock that he would use the baby as the perfect cover for it. "You miss him." Jackie stated. Hyde nodded again and Jackie decided that the truth was out so they could try their hands at resting now. "Come on baby." Jackie said to him and he climbed in beside her, still dressed.

Although this was not the world's most comfortable bed, Hyde had spent the majority of the evening sitting on a cold, concrete floor so he would take what he could get. Also, having a gorgeous, sexy woman lying next to him didn't hurt. _Yeah, this is a pretty sweet deal _Hyde thought. _And if she likes the next surprise then things will just be getting better._ Just then, Hyde felt Jackie begin to roam around and leave a trail of kisses along his neck.

Things were getting better already.

_To be continued._

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**A/N: **I know, way too sappy lol. But there's hardly a shortage of angst around so I figure we can have some late night fluff. I've written the final scene of this story so now I just have to figure out how to get to it. :p Review please and I promise I won't take so long to update again.

Stay safe.


	13. Changes

**THE RIGHT WAY AROUND.**

Chapter 13 – Changes. 

**A/N: **Hey. I had less reviews than usual last time but the ones I got were incredible to read so thank you. :) And thank you luvcali for noticing it too. But let's move on… I'm going to skip ahead in this chapter because I want to advance Jackie's pregnancy or else this will never end lol. So this begins approximately 6 weeks after the last chapter (she's almost 5 months along). Thanks a lot and happy reading.

P.S. I used a line from the Golden Girls I heard and if you're fan you will recognize it but if not then you won't care.

Warning: Language, I guess. Rare, though.

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing and after the crap the show spilled out in Season 8, I'm relieved to have nothing to do with the show.

----------

THE HUB

"So I'm thinking we can hold off on booking a place until the guests give us their availability dates. That way we can also give everybody more time to buy the avalanche of gifts you have requested. Finally… Jackie?" Donna queried as she looked up from her sheet for the first time in almost 20 minutes to see her best friend staring off into space. "Jackie?" she tried again more forcefully.

Jackie flinched and focused her attention on her friend and smiled apologetically. "Sorry, I'm just freaking out about stuff. Again." Jackie gave a nervous laugh and started shifting through hotel brochures while Donna eyed her suspiciously.

"You know," Donna started, "I would think that you of all people would get excited about planning a baby shower. Or as is the case, piling in your eighth plate of fries while **I** plan it for you." Donna reminded her teasingly.

Jackie put down the brochures and sighed. Looking at Donna again, she started unloading what had been plaguing her thoughts since the previous evening. "Have you sent the base-nursery lately?" she asked, catching herself.

Donna scoffed. "It's not exactly easy to miss what with the radioactive paint." Upon Jackie's glare, Donna quickly shut her mouth for fear of angering the beast once again. "Sorry." she mouthed. Jackie started again,

"_Anyway" _Jackie drawled "if your senses haven't yet been completely destroyed by that sorry excuse for hair dye, you might have noticed that the painting is done, the carpet has been fitted and the furniture has been ordered. I'm freakin' out Donna!" Jackie exclaimed, her voice hitting a new level of shrill.

Donna struggled to stifle her laughter at the sight of Jackie in such a frazzled state. Once she had regained her composure, she asked, "Well, I'm sure that as freaked out as you are, Hyde is even more so." Donna told her convincingly but Jackie merely arched her eyebrow.

"Oh, you'd think so, wouldn't you Donna? But nooo." Jackie said mockingly and launched into a full-blown tirade. "_Steven_ has to be the one who has everything under control. _Steven _has to be the one who makes sure I get all the right food. _Steven_ has to be the one who organized my Lamaze classes. _Steven_ has to be the one who thought a birthing video would help me prepare for this elephant of a child and _Steven _has to be the one who is constantly on the decorator's back making sure they're not slacking off." Taking a breath, Jackie gave one last comment. "And _Steven_ had to be the one to talk you into planning this shower because he didn't want me getting stressed out!" Jackie huffed and sat back on her seat with a frown while Donna stared at her with wide eyes.

"Well clearly he failed with the last one." Donna joked.

Jackie groaned and leant forward so that she could whisper to her. "It's just… I'm really scared about having this baby." Jackie told her honestly. Donna immediately looked at her with concern.

"Hey, you're gonna be fine." Donna reassured her but it didn't have much of an effect on Jackie so she tried again. "Every first-time mother gets like this. I'm sure of it." Donna searched for the right words to help her. "Look, it's probably just because you're past the half-way point now." Jackie looked at her confused so Donna clarified, "You know, at first you could act like the baby wouldn't come for months and you could put off all of this anxiety for a while, but now…" she trailed off.

"Now…?" Jackie pushed her.

Donna rolled her eyes in frustration. "_Now_, you are really close to the end and now you have to start preparing for this baby arriving. It's real now." Donna felt a surge of happiness when she said the last part as it struck her for the first time that her best friend was really going to have a baby. She noticed that Jackie looked a lot calmer than she had a minute earlier and that her eyes were slightly glassy. Suddenly a huge smile covered her face.

"Oh my God! I'm having a baby!" Jackie exclaimed happily and the two women proceeded to wipe tears from the corners of their eyes while laughing slightly.

Donna cleared her eyes. "Man, we are such girls. I need a circle."

Jackie laughed and pointed to her slightly bigger stomach. "Good luck with that." Donna looked at her, intrigued.

"So Hyde really has everything under control for you?" Jackie smiled happily and nodded.

"Oh, Donna. He is incredible. I never thought he could be so mature, sweet and caring. He really is a changed man."

----------

ERIC'S ROOM

Hyde: This was an awesome idea, man. Red would never think to look for us in your room.

PAN TO ERIC

Eric: Yeah. It's pretty ingenius, huh?

PAN TO FEZ

Fez: _(frustrated) _Yes, Eric. You are the king. Now can we please talk about boobs!

PAN TO ERIC

Eric: Jeez, relax man. Fine, we can talk about boobs.

PAN TO HYDE

Hyde: Yeah, I mean have you seen the size of Jackie's boobs lately? Everywhere you look, there they are. Man, knocking a girl up is great. _(grins)_

PAN TO FEZ

Fez: You are so lucky Hyde. Not only did you find a beautiful woman to have sex with, but you get to touch her gigantic boobies all day long. I hate you.

PAN TO HYDE

Hyde: And it's not just how _big_ they are. They're also great to sleep on. You're looking for a couple of pillows? Go find Jackie.

PAN TO ERIC

Eric: Maybe I should get Donna pregnant! Yeah, and then she'd be huge.

PAN TO FEZ

Fez: Donna would crush you if she was pregnant, Eric. She's like an Amazon. Just like home…

PAN TO HYDE

Hyde: Well, Jackie can crush me if she wants. 'Cos what a way to go! _(laughs)_

PAN TO ERIC

Eric: OK, so pregnancy is out. Oh! I could propose again!

PAN TO HYDE

Hyde: NO! I'm still bruised from the last time you ditched Donna after proposing.

PAN TO FEZ

Fez: Buy her another promise ring. That was so much fun last time!

PAN TO HYDE

Hyde: Oh, you mean how she wore it around her neck instead of on her hand? Yeah, that was a sweet burn.

PAN TO FEZ

Fez: _(chuckling)_ Ooh, how about when she told him she couldn't keep it! Oh, how I cried from my spot inside the Cruiser.

PAN TO HYDE

Hyde: Hehe, yeah. Well, as fun as reliving past burns on Forman is, I should probably go to work.

PAN TO ERIC

Eric: Aw, man. All you ever do these days is work and earn money and build a life. It's all so meaningless.

PAN TO HYDE

Hyde: Well Forman, if I have to choose circle time with you or having sex with Jackie against the cash register, you know what I'm gonna choose.

PAN TO FEZ

Fez: Of course! The cash register! Nothing can make Jackie hornier than rolling around in money!

PAN TO HYDE

Hyde: You have no idea, man. For her birthday last year, I got her a tiny roulette table. I'm still in bandages.

----------

NURSERY

Jackie found herself coming here more and more often since Hyde and Fez had finished painting the walls and fitting the carpet two weeks ago. Sitting in the rocking chair in complete silence, Jackie gazed down at the large photo album Kitty had been keeping for over 10 years. In it were mainly photos of the gang at school events, nights out or simply shots taken while they hung around the basement. As Jackie looked at each picture, she felt wave after wave of nostalgia catch her. The six of them had barely started their lives but already they had made a lifetime's worth of memories. Concerts, graduations, dances, camping trips. They had all seemed like such major events at the time and as she passed through each photo, she laughed at how overdramatic and silly they could be at times. As she neared the end of the album, she finally came across some pictures of Hyde and her together. These photos, however, did not generate so many happy memories. The day of Hyde's high school graduation – he had just cheated on her and moments after the photo was taken, Red had a heart attack. Then there were Christmas photos from the year before where their relationship was falling apart. Then some pictures of the gang at the Packers Game where she had ended up crying over Hyde. And finally some photos of Jackie on the set of her cable show; something she had used as an escape from her break-up with Hyde. Frowning, she swore she would have to get some good photos of the two of them to put in the baby book. There was no way she would one day explain to her child what the story was behind these pictures.

Hearing the door above her open, Jackie slowly closed the album and put it back into the crib just as Hyde reached the bottom of the stairs. Hyde was actually surprised to see her down here by herself. He had naturally assumed that she would wait until the room was finished before deeming it worthy of her presence. Still, he was glad to see her because with Leo still AWOL, he had been forced to call a temp agency and get some guys in to help with the clearance sale. That had been one too many barely lucid experiences for one day. But now he got to come home to a beautiful woman at the end of it all. _Doesn't suck_ Hyde thought. Smiling at her, Hyde walked over to Jackie and gave her a short but sweet kiss and led her back to his room so that he could finally collapse. And well, if she wanted to do a little something more to him while he lay there, then by all means he wouldn't try and stop her.

"Can we sleep now?" Jackie asked as the pair fell onto the bed. She could barely keep her eyes open and wanted nothing more than to just lie there with him until the cavalry arrived. Or until Kitty called them for dinner.

Hyde grinned. "You're reading my mind. If Grooves is anywhere near as hectic tomorrow as it was today, I'm gonna have to start going in all day." Jackie merely yawned and rested her head on his chest.

"Whatever makes you happy, baby." Jackie mumbled. Smiling despite himself at her sleepy expression, Hyde turned on his side and placed his right arm around her so that both of them could get comfortable. And the pair were out like a light.

----------

5 WEEKS LATER (JACKIE IS 6 MONTHS ALONG)

"STE-_VEN!"_ Jackie hollered from her seat on the toilet. Moments later the door burst open and in ran a frantic looking Hyde who was immediately at her side.

"Wha-what? What is it, what's wrong?" he asked breathless.

Jackie's cheeks acquired a bit of a crimson colour. "I can't get up." Jackie muttered and she quite literally saw the muscles in Hyde's face relax but when his arms started to shake and he threw his head back in laughter, she immediately burst into tears.

_Oh crap_ Hyde thought. "Crap, don't cry. It's just your hormo-"

"I'm not crying because of hormones, dammit!" Jackie said between tears. "I'm crying because my size 40 ass won't let me get off this toilet!!" Hyde blinked when some of her spit hit his sunglasses square on. Now that she was entering her final trimester, Dr. Harris had warned that her hormones would be at their most erratic and that every fear a man could have about a pregnant partner would become reality. And lucky Hyde had another three months of this. "Are you going to just sit there and gawk at me until this baby go on a tour of the town sewage system or are you going to help me up?" Jackie spat at him. _Yup_ Hyde thought. _That's gotta be hormones_

Hyde put one arm around her shoulders and another around her lower abdomen and slowly lifted her off the seat. Once she was standing, Jackie noticed he was still a bit out of breathed and narrowed her eyes at him. "Are you tired from lifting me?" Jackie asked him warningly.

However, he was still too new at this to realize when he was being asked questions or when he was being told answers. "Well to be fair-"

"Oh, you did not just call me fat!" Jackie told him and marched out of the bathroom.

"I didn't." Hyde said with a confused look. "I was about to say it though."

----------

FORMAN KITCHEN

Donna and Jackie sat at the kitchen table sipping at some hot lemon flavoured herbal tea Kitty had whipped up for a caffeine-deprived Jackie. Donna cringed at the taste but did her best to plaster on a fake smile so that Jackie didn't throw another cup over her.

"Now, isn't this nice?" Donna said to her while Jackie glared back. "Or awkward as hell." Donna muttered.

Jackie put down the cup and clicked her fingers three times. Kitty recognized the signal and ran from the stove over to Jackie and promptly gave her a refill. "There you go sweetheart." Kitty said with a comforting smile. "All better?"

"Oh no." Donna groaned and lowered her head as much as she could.

Kitty quickly realized the trap she had put herself in but it was too late to do anything about it because the beast had been officially angered. "All better, Mrs. Forman?" Jackie asked sweetly. "What exactly would be all better now that I have gotten a refill of some crappy ass herbal tea?" she asked with her voice becoming increasingly menacing. "The fact that my doctor says that I will get bigger over the next few months despite the fact that I have a tiny frame? The fact that I can't seem to turn around without winding somebody in the stomach? Or-

"JACKIE!!" Donna yelled causing her friend to lost focus and regain some sense."

Jackie turned back to the petrified older woman and started crying. "Oh, Mrs. Forman I'm so sorry!" she said wrapping her in a hug.

Not knowing which of Jackie's many personalities was the more lethal; Kitty untangled the girl from her arms and sat her back down. And then she ran like hell.

Now that the girls were by themselves, Donna decided to butter Jackie up for the 27th time today. "So you seem to be burning people a lot better lately." Donna stated. "It's like your whole sense of humour is sharper."

Jackie nodded while sipping at her tea. "I know, it's weird. It's like somebody is telling me to say different things and be more of a tease. It's exciting though. You should see what it has done for me in bed!" Jackie exclaimed excitedly.

Donna found herself oddly interested. "What do you mean?" she asked. Just then Hyde walked through the kitchen door with a cane and a limp as well as an eye patch. "Hey." Hyde muttered before walking out the sliding door. Donna looked back to Jackie who was smiling wickedly and Donna gasped.

"Oh, come on Donna. I'm a whole lot heavier than I used to be. It's not my fault I was on top last night."

"Well how did he end up with an eye patch?" Donna asked her, bewildered.

Jackie's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "I'm not sure. It could have been when I kneed him in the face."

"Jackie!" Donna shouted in disbelief.

"What, I'm ticklish down there!" Jackie said in defence.

Donna simply rolled her eyes, begging for this pregnancy to end.

------------

RECORD STATION

DONNA'S BOOTH

Jackie had just gotten back from a check-up and with Hyde meeting with W.B. Jackie decided to book in some more time with Donna which is how she ended up sitting next to her in the radio station eating her lunch. Once they moved past the details of her appointment, Jackie began to quiz Donna about her date with Eric the following night.

"You know, you guys have been together and broken up so many times, I don't even know what you count as your anniversary." Jackie stated.

Donna glared at her. "That's funny. I was just gonna say the same thing about you and Hyde. Or you and Kelso…"

"OK, ok, sorry." Jackie said sheepishly. She watched Donna gulp down half a cheeseburger and turned her nose in disgust. "You know, you shouldn't give in to your natural beast cravings when you have such a big date tomorrow night." Jackie said in her typical disparaging way.

Donna shook her head. "It doesn't matter. The fat always takes a few days to show." Donna told her while finishing off her cheesburger.

Jackie looked at her in confusion. "Where does it go in the meantime?" she asked.

Donna looked at her blankly. "To Connecticut!" she exclaimed. "How should I know where it goes?"

_So much for having a sharper mind_ Donna thought with frustration.

----------

GROOVES

HYDE'S OFFICE

"What?... No! You can't just dump it there until I can pick it up… Because it's supposed to have been ready last week, that's why…well why don't you go do that to yourself!"

Hyde hung up the phone in annoyance and before he had time to bite into his lunch, there was a knock at the door. "Fuck's sake." Hyde muttered and got up to open the door, coming face to face with Leo.

"Leo, hey you're back!" Hyde said happily.

"Really?" Leo asked hopefully and Hyde just closed his eyes to find the strength he always needed when talking to this guy.

"So where've you been for the last few months?" Hyde asked him as they walked out of his office and over to the listening pit.

Sitting on the couch beside him, Leo replied, "Well, to cut a long story short. I found out my wife was married to some other guy and that he didn't go for threesomes so I sent her back to him."

Hyde frowned, unsure if he should believe him. Regardless, it was good to see him again and Hyde was looking forward to having someone around the store other than horny teenage virgins and horny 40 year old virgins looking for anything in the Elton John collection. Or as Hyde liked to call it, 'pizza dumpster.' "That sucks, man." Hyde told him.

Leo nodded. "Yeah. But now I can get back to my dreams. Like finding a cure for cancer. And finding new storylines for Happy Days. That shark thing was scary, man." Leo said with a shiver. He began looking around the store and when his gaze/haze rested on Hyde, he asked, "Hey, where's foreign guy?"

"Work."

"What about tall girl?"

"Work."

"And loud girl?"

"Eating." Hyde stated as quickly as he had answered Leo's two previous questions.

"Why isn't she working?" Leo asked with confusion. Or rather, more confusion than usual. Hyde was perplexed by Leo's seemingly valid line of questioning.

"Uh… she can't work right now cos she's having a baby." Hyde told him proudly. She was having his baby. That still felt weird for Hyde to grasp.

"Why, is she pregnant?" Leo asked. _And there it is_ Hyde thought.

----------

3 WEEKS LATER

FORMAN KITCHEN

"Oh, this is just so exciting!" Kitty exclaimed as she, Red, Hyde, Eric, Donna, Fez, Bob, Leo and Laurie were gathered around the door leading down to the basement. Laurie, who was only a month earlier than Jackie, stood with her hand on her back and leant against the wall in discomfort. Kitty continued, "Now I'll be honest. Occasionally I did sneak a peek or two at what was going on down there-"

"You mean how you sat on the stairs all morning and followed Hyde and Dad around with binoculars?" Eric interrupted causing Donna to smirk.

"Eric." Red groaned. "Shut up and let Steven open the damn door." Red looked around him and sighed. "For God's sake, why is everyone here?"

Kitty slapped his arm. "Now you stop that Red Forman. This is a special day and it's only right that everybody we love is here to share it with us. Now Steven, will you do the honours?" Kitty asked him eagerly.

"Sure." Hyde stated. "I've been waiting my whole life to open a door." Opening the door, he continued, "It was worth the wait."

One by one, the group quietly descended the stairs with Red leading the pack, followed by Kitty, Eric, Donna, Laurie, Bob, Leo and Hyde, in that order. The ladies gasped while the men whistled with approval. No longer were the walls a plain ocean blue. Now they had faint images of clouds on the ceiling and the wall where the washer and deep freeze used to rest against was now filled with an Aladdin theme with the magic carpet, several characters and the marketplace illuminated in a dark blue sky. The rocking chair had been glazed and now caught the light of the paint. The crib was also fully furnished and had a new cream coloured baby blanket in place of Hyde's template. More furniture had been added with a mobile hanging over the crib and a bookcase in place of the records along with a tiny cassette player on top of it next to a stack of read-along children's books and nursery rhymes. By the spot where the shower used to be was a playpen which currently held various toys and stuffed animals. For a more practical nature, the cassette player had a shelf above it holding diapers, bottles, baby wipes, a thermometer and a baby book. The last thing to be noticed was the sleeping figure in the rocking chair with a photo album opened on her lap. Hyde walked over to her and gently nudged her shoulder, making her wake up.

"Hey," she mumbled groggily, "what time is it?" Jackie asked with a yawn.

"Time to show everybody the nursery." Hyde joked as Jackie noticed the crowd of people examining every feature of the room. Hyde helped her stand up and placed his hand protectively in the small of her back. "Look who's awake." Hyde said to get everybody's attention. Kitty, Donna and of course, Fez rushed to Jackie's side and began offering their opinions on the style of the room while the guys and Laurie leaned casually against the stairs. Eric noticed their bored faces and felt the urge to say something.

"Hey, Hyde. Not to insult your work or anything but this place is a bit…" Eric trailed off, unsure of how to finish his thought.

"Boring?" Hyde suggested with a smirk. "Yeah, don't expect to see me in here that often."

Fez heard this remark and laughed to himself as he thought of what was behind Hyde's comment.

After a while, everyone had cleared out leaving only Hyde and Jackie in the room. "So, everyone seemed to be impressed." Hyde stated proudly. Jackie smiled happily at him and quickly ran over to the playpen where she tossed the stuffed animals from their spots and pulled out a long, thick piece of fabric and placed it in his hands. "What's this?" he asked in confusion. Jackie rolled her eyes and simply smiled at him. After a few moments, Hyde unrolled the fabric and felt a smile tug at his face. The last remnants of his Zen however, would not allow the smile to fully surface and Jackie had to settle for his patented grin as a reaction. "Well, it's a blanket." Hyde stated blankly. Looking up at her hopeful expression, he finally told her, "Thank you."

----------

4 WEEKS LATER

FORMAN HOUSE

Laurie was out with her fiancée. Or at least she said she was with him. Red and Kitty were at the church's bingo night which consisted of Kitty networking with the bar crowd and Red ensuring nobody touched the Corvette he had bought back the previous day with his retirement money. Eric was at a jewelry store with Fez, looking at engagement rings. He was under strict orders from Red not to go and buy one just yet. He was only allowed to look. Then there was Hyde who was working late at Grooves and then having an even later dinner with W.B. And then there was Jackie; who was currently lying on the bathroom floor, barely conscious, with sweat covering her forehead and her hands clutching her lower abdomen in agony.

"Somebody please help me." she whispered.

----------

**A/N: **Uh oh. This was a bit shorter than usual but I think you can tell from the ending why that is. Just to add to the bombshell: there is only one chapter left. :( Don't hate me for breaking it like that but I knew if I said it earlier then you would all convince me to carry on and I just couldn't risk it. You all have too much power over me!!! Brightside is that I have a new story on the way _very_ soon and perhaps a little something before that.

If you don't hate me, then please review for me. For old time's sake.


	14. Full Circle

**THE RIGHT WAY AROUND.**

Chapter 14 – Full Circle. 

**A/N: **Hey again. Seems like a guilt trip and a cliffhanger are the best ways to fuel reviews because you all rocked last time. :) Really, thank you for everything. Now we're at the end of this story and I am really sad to see this end, but it is definitely the right time to go. Thank you for everything and… well, we'll talk more at the end. Happy reading.

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing and after the crap the show spilled out in Season 8, I'm relieved to have nothing to do with the show.

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FORMAN HOUSE

"All I said was that you _might_ have had just a_ little_ too much to drink. That's all." Red said as he chased his tiny but speedy wife into the house. But Red nearly jumped back into his Corvette when Kitty whipped around and fixed him with a deathly glare.

"_That's all?_" Kitty asked evenly. "Thanks to you interrupting my conversation with Nicole Macy, this entire town is going to think I am some old drunk! Oh, you, you… ogre-face!" And with a flustered sigh, Kitty threw her bag down on the counter and stormed out to the dining room but came back in a moment later. "And since you seem to be so intent on looking after my best interests, I suggest you lock the garage door extra tight tonight. We wouldn't want the police coming after me for wrapping a car around a tree." Flouncing out again, Kitty quickly climbed the stairs and left Red to break out the emergence wine and the framed picture of Casey Kelso he used for the real emergencies.

_That ought to do it_ Red thought with a grimace.

----------

FORMAN BATHROOM

Jackie could have sworn she just heard someone come up the stairs, but in her weakened state she couldn't yell loud enough to draw any attention to herself. And this was a first for Jackie Burkhart.

----------

RED AND KITTY'S ROOM

"That grouchy bastard thinks he can tell me when I have had too much to drink when he spent the entire night putting traffic cones around that stupid car."

Kitty's incessant muttering was bordering on psychotic as she folded, unfolded and re-folded clothes and put them into her dresser. After finally coming down for a breath, she grabbed her dressing gown and went across the hall to the bathroom to change. But just as she began to open the door, she noticed that Eric's door was wide open and that he was nowhere to be seen.

"**_RED!!!"_**

"I'm here Kitty, I'm here." Red announced as he bounded up the stairs, wine and photo in hand and a hopeful smile on his face.

Grasping his shirt collars, Kitty proclaimed, "Is alcohol all you think about? Our son has been kidnapped for God's sake!" Kitty ran to the top of the stairs and looked back at Red. "On second thought." She ran back to him, grabbed the wine out of his hand and then ran back down the stairs.

Red stood there, unsure if it was safer for him to go calm her down or to go to bed. Deciding the latter might have him waking up to a sight scarier than the Korean trenches, he begrudgingly walked back down to the living room where Kitty was most likely packing up an arsenal.

But while these two were trying to find their son, Jackie was soaked with sweat on the bathroom floor and was just trying to remain conscious. However, with nobody coming to her rescue anytime soon, this soon became a lost cause and for her, everything faded to black.

----------

FRENCHIE'S RESTAURANT

W.B. put up with a lot in this lily-white community, but the restaurant he was currently dining in with his son was co clichéd that even clichés would be embarrassed to be associated with it. But before he had any more time to dwell on his reasons for not selling the only remaining Grooves in this 'rhythm-less town' as he had once called it, he felt forced to bring to attention Hyde's distracted behaviour. "Son." W.B. said with a tap on the table.

"Huh?" Hyde asked with only faint awareness although it only took a moment for him to realize W.B. was talking to him. "Oh sorry, what was it you were saying?" Hyde asked him with full attention this time.

W.B. smirked. "I was just wondering why you seem so… distracted tonight. Normally you jump at the chance of a free meal. Even if it is in a place which seems to be painted in cheese." Boy, he had a million of these.

Hyde just shook his head and attempted a laugh. "No, no. It's just Jackie, you know?" he asked him concerned. W.B. gave a chuckle.

"Ah, yes. The final weeks syndrome."

Hyde looked at him in confusion. "The final what?"

"Final weeks. Of the pregnancy." W.B. clarified and Hyde nodded his head in false understanding. "Steven, every father-to-be gets like this just before they actually become a father. Why, I remember when Angie's mother was almost ready to give birth. I couldn't sleep, I couldn't eat. Hell, I couldn't work." Hyde gave a genuine laugh this time as he tried to envision his father not wanting to do business. "I was so terrified that I would miss the birth that I didn't go to the bathroom for three weeks." Upon Hyde's bewildered reaction to this, W.B. grimaced. "You probably didn't need to know that part, huh?"

Hyde put his hand up to stop W.B. from continuing. "Thanks W.B. but I don't think I have 'final weeks syndrome or anything. I've just had this really bad feeling today about Jackie." Hyde said quietly.

W.B. leaned in to him. "How so?" he asked concerned.

Rubbing his hand over his eyes, Hyde sighed. "I don't know. It's just… Jackie looked kind of pale today and when I talked to her a couple of hours ago, she sounded pretty sick. Like she had the flu or something."

Perhaps he was mistaken, but W.B. couldn't remember another time when Hyde had actually came to him with a serious concern of his that didn't involve work or locking girls in basements. Now he was actually looking to him to give him some fatherly advice. "Look Steven, Jackie has Red and Kitty with her right now. You know that the second she needs you, they will fine a way of letting you know." Hyde didn't look remotely reassured but he tried for W.B's sake, seeing as how they didn't share fears and secrets that often. Both men looked for ways to change the subject without being too obvious and an idea seemed to strike W.B. first.

"Why don't you tell me why you wanted to meet?" he asked his son, surprised that he hadn't asked this earlier. But with Hyde being distracted for so long, it seemed like the purpose of this late dinner had been forgotten.

"Right. Um… this is gonna sound a bit strange coming from me." Hyde told him.

W.B. nodded. "And considering the thing you normally say, I expect this would actually sound normal coming from anybody else. Am I right?" he asked jokingly. Hyde grinned at the ease that had returned to their conversation.

"Pretty much."

A few moments of silence passed where Hyde appeared to have forgotten to speak and resumed eating his meal. "Steven." W.B. said quickly and Hyde looked up. "You were saying… nothing."

Hyde nodded and cleared his throat. "Right, OK, right." His palms were actually sweating so much that the fabric on his jeans was beginning to wear from rubbing them with his hands so much. "I just wanted to ask you, about you know… being a parent."

W.B. blinked. "OK. What would you like to know?"

Hyde stuttered over his next sentence and quickly grew frustrated. This wasn't even about opening up to somebody. This was more about risking the good thing he had going with his father. "Why weren't you one?" he asked out of the blue and W.B. immediately looked confused. "To me, I mean." Hyde clarified.

Speechless summed up William Barnett's current state of mind and Hyde took it upon himself to rely on some old Zen tactics that could make this silence more bearable. Eventually though, W.B. opened his mouth.

"Steven, this really isn't an easy thing to answer. I mean, your mom was a great lady but back then… hell, even now… it's… it probably would have done more harm than good for Edna and I to try and make things work." Hyde laughed bitterly.

"Yeah, because my childhood was so dandy with Bud and her as parents." W.B. sighed again.

"That's not what I mean, Steven. I just thought that being part of a family where your father was a struggling businessman, not to mention black, would have made people treat you like an outcast. Or more of one." Hyde was understandably angered by W.B's explanation.

"That's crap, W.B." Hyde retorted. "In my entire childhood I made **three **friends and had to rely on somebody else's mom to make sure I was fed and clothed properly. Yet, you want me to believe that I was better of that way?" Hyde's voice was beginning to rise.

W.B. knew that he wasn't going to make Hyde see his point this way so another idea struck him. "Steven, what did you think of Angie when you first met her?"

Hyde frowned. _Why the hell is he asking me this?_ "She was a spoiled, two-faced pain in the ass who would screw anybody over if need be. And she used too much hairspray." Hyde was especially truthful with that last part because her huge 'fro made her an easy target for Fez to store candy without her knowing about it.

"Exactly." W.B. told him. "And that's how you might have turned out if I played a part in your life. Imagine how different things would be if you had been one of the rich kids." This comment sent Hyde into deep thought as he pictured being the embodiment of every student he had ever beaten up. He also pictured never becoming friends with Forman, Kelso and Donna as well as never hanging out in the basement. Never claiming his chair. Never moving into his room. Never burning Laurie over dinner. Never meeting Fez. And never having the _hardest_ summer of his life.

"I did what I thought was right, Steven. Maybe it wasn't what was best for you but it seemed like the only choice at the time. And, Edna and Bud were not always so bad. They even used to do the laundry." Hyde chuckled. "Red and Kitty, now. They were born parents. Me? I'm a born businessman." Raising his glass, W.B. toasted, "Here's hope that you got a little bit of both in you."

----------

FORMAN KITCHEN

Almost an hour after Kitty began her vicious manhunt of the phonebook to see if anybody knew where Eric had ended up; in he walked through the door leading into the living room with a huge smile in his face and an equally ecstatic former redhead at his side. Kitty jumped out of her chair and launched herself into her baby's arms.

"Oh, Eric I was worried. Who took you? Was it the Canadians?" she asked menacingly.

Donna laughed into Eric's shoulder. "Mrs. Forman, we have some pretty big news to share with you." She looked at Eric. "You wanna tell her or should I?"

"I'll do it." Eric told her and he clasped his mother's hands in his. "I know Dad pretty much forbade it, but… Donna and I are engaged!

Kitty stared at him blankly. "Again?" she groaned. "Eric, I already spent my entire 4th of July trying to convince people you actually weren't gay. I don't have the energy to reverse the rumour when you run out on Donna again."

Donna stepped forward. "Mrs. Forman, it's different this time. Eric isn't going to run away again."

"Oh, of course he won't sweetheart!" Kitty told her patronizingly. "But just in case, I think we should make a list of possible excuses in the event of another non-wedding. Now Eric, are you into anything weird, sex-wise?" Kitty asked with a notepad and pen in hand.

"Ew, no." "Yeah." Eric and Donna both spoke at the same time and looked at each other in surprise.

"Eric, what are you talking about?" Donna asked with a slight laugh. "Have you completely forgotten about the pinky incident?" Eric began blushing.

"Donna! I told you it was from a movie!"

"Ooh! I think Red and I saw that one!" Kitty exclaimed excitedly. "There was this one scene where they fantasize they are in some old fashioned saloon and the local harlot leans on the bar counter in a red teddy and asks the sheriff, 'Why sir, I do declare that is one mighty fine weapon you have there.' And then the sheriff says, 'Well if you like this, wait till you see what I've got in my gun holster.' Oh, Red and I had so much fun acting that out!" Kitty said in hysterical laughter while Eric and Donna both appeared to be catatonic.

"A pleasure as always, mom." Eric told her and left Donna to find her own way home as he walked up to his room in a zombie-like manner. Once he reached his room, Eric noticed that the bathroom was slightly ajar and went to close it when he felt something heavy leaning against it. Flicking the light switch on, he pushed the door wide open…

----------

POINT PLACE GENERAL HOSPITAL – EMERGENCY ROOM

The ER doors swung open.

"Give me the bullet."

"20 year old female, found unconscious in her bathroom-"

"OD?"

"No pills were found at the scene and there are no slash marks. 35 weeks pregnant. BP 90/60. Pulse 88, weak and thready. Pupils are sluggish but reactive to light. No apparent sign of head trauma and cervical membrane remains intact."

"That's what I like to hear." Various medical personnel rolled Jackie down the hall while Eric, Donna, Red, Kitty and Laurie followed them closely behind. "They the family?" one doctor asked in reference to the group.

"Yes, we're her family." Kitty told them quickly as she struggled to control her breathing.

"Is she on any medication?" the doctor asked.

"No." Kitty told them

"Has she been ill recently?"

"No, she's been fine!" Donna yelled as she clung to Eric.

"Could be a placental abruption."

"Could be a mesenteric clot."

"Could be a lot of things! Now can we quit with the guessing please?" the attending ordered.

As the doctors pushed Jackie's gurney into the trauma room, a nurse stopped the large group and informed them that they could not go beyond this point and must stay in the waiting room. After several threatening attempts from Donna and Laurie for them to stay with her, Red tried to calm his family and weakly led them to the waiting room. There was nothing to be done.

----------

FRNECHIE'S RESTAURANT

_Mjhzsx, That's amore!_

The awful croons of a drunk interracial father and son were rudely interrupted when the maitre d' requested their attention.

"Excuse me, Mr. Hyde?" he asked politely.

"Probably." Hyde said before he and W.B. burst out laughing.

The maitre d' cleared his throat and spoke again. "Yes, well. There is a Mr. Bob Pinciotti at my station and he says that there is a family emergency which requests your immediate presence."

Hyde looked shocked. "Oh my God, Forman must weigh more than Donna!" The maitre d' gave up trying to talk to them and beckoned Bob over to the table. "Hey, Bobbo!" Hyde shouted. "Sit down and have a drink with us."

Bob, who would have normally jumped for joy at being invited to join a party, was instead trying to sum up the courage to inform Hyde of where his pregnant girlfriend was currently residing.

"Steven, listen to me. They've taken Jackie to the hospital and we need to go now." Bob spoke so low and so solemnly that Hyde's euphoria transformed into complete bewilderment.

"Come on Bob, you're ovractin'." Hyde slurred. "Shez juz nappn, is all."

Bob snapped. "Steven, listen to me! Jackie. Is. In. The. Hospital. She and the baby are in danger! Now come one!" Nobody was more surprised than Bob himself, that he reacted in such a way. But Jackie had pretty much been the one to help Donna overcome Midge's leaving since he had been so preoccupied with Joanne and Pam and every other woman who breathed his way.

At the mention of the baby, Hyde seemed to become more alert. "Wh-Wha…"

"Steven, come with me. I'll explain in the car." Helping Hyde stand up, Bob looked for any means of sobering Hyde up before they got to the hospital. Because if Hyde got there in his current state and couldn't get near Jackie, all hell was going to break loose.

----------

WAITING ROOM

Nobody in this room was a stranger to hospitals. After all, Kitty actually worked in this one, each of them had accompanied Kelso everytime he had fallen off of the water tower, Eric had worked here for a day back in junior year and Red had even been admitted himself when he suffered a heart attack. So the waiting wasn't the problem. It was the guilt.

Each of them had been so consumed by their own lives that they had neglected to even check on Jackie. Red had been worrying about his car, Kitty was scouring for Eric, Laurie was out shopping with her fiancée and Donna and Eric had been busy getting engaged. They were all perfectly entitled to worry about their own lives, but when compared with a young, pregnant girl lying unconscious and alone for God-knows-how-long on a bathroom floor in an empty house, it was pretty easy to see how they could each be so filled with guilt.

"Are you here for Jackie Burkhart?"

They all looked up at the sound of the nurse and immediately stood and crowded around her.

"How is she?"

"What's wrong with her?"

"Can we see her?"

"Is the baby OK?"

"Everybody quiet!" Kitty commanded and at once the group shut up. Kitty knew this nurse well but she also knew that she hadn't been working on Jackie so whatever the news was, Kitty was betting on it being difficult to hear.

"Well, the doctor wanted me to tell you that Jackie is in a serious but stable condition. Her blood tests showed that she had an elevated white blood cell count so we gave her an abdominal ultrasound which showed that she has suffered from a burst appendix. As a result-"

"Wait a minute." Eric interrupted. "I had my appendix out years ago and it was all over in a couple of hours. Why can't you just take hers out?""

"Because," the nurse continued, "a burst appendix means that an appendectomy can't be done and the bacteria have already spread into her liver."

"Oh my God." Donna muttered and began crying softly.

"Coupled with her pregnancy, her heart is having to work incredibly hard and the doctors fear that she is at risk of heart failure." By the point, everybody in the room was struggling to keep standing and the nurse feared continuing with the bad news. So she did what any good friend would do. "Kitty, could we talk outside please?"

Kitty looked up from Red's tight embrace and slowly nodded, following her out into the corridor where the nurse began to fill her in on the rest of the situation.

"I can't believe this." Eric muttered and for once, Red didn't tell him to shut it and Laurie didn't start taunting him. They were past that point.

After a few minutes of waiting and praying, the door to the waiting room burst open and the group looked up expectantly. But instead of Kitty with good news, they saw Hyde panting and Bob coming in right behind him. "Wh-Where… is she?" he asked, breathless.

Red shrugged helplessly while everybody let their dead silence tell him the gravity of the situation. Hyde was ready to storm off in search of anybody he could pound for information, when Kitty stumbled back in weakly.

"Steven." she stated calmly. "Good, I'm glad you're here for this. Um, Eric, Donna and Laurie? Could you please excuse Red and me for a moment? We need to speak to Steven."

The three of them looked at each other in uncertainty but reluctantly went with Bob and left Hyde alone with Red and Kitty.

Hyde's stare remained fixed on Kitty as he pushed her for information. "OK, Steven what we have here is-"

"Just tell me she's alright." Hyde interrupted impatiently. Kitty took him by the arm and led him over to the couch where she sat with him.

"Steven, about an hour and a half ago, Eric found Jackie unconscious in the bathroom." Despite the seriousness of what was going on, Hyde found himself being calmed by her voice. It was the loving and nurturing tone she used in moments where he needed reassurance and protection. But he was about to get neither.

"We called an ambulance. They brought her here very quickly and the doctors began working on her immediately. They found out that her appendix had burst and this caused an infection to spread into her bloodstream. At the moment, the baby is in no danger and Jackie is in a stable condition. But the longer we wait, the more the infection will spread and the more difficult it will take to stop. And because of her pregnancy, Jackie's heart was already working harder than usual but this infection is making it work even harder. Steven, the doctors can't treat the infection as long as she is still pregnant because the medicine they want to use can be harmful to the baby." Hyde was focused solely on Kitty's eyes and she felt herself begin to buckle under the pressure of his intense gaze. "They want me to tell you that there are two choices. You can allow them to deliver the baby early before it is in any danger and to administer Jackie the medication necessary to stop the infection from becoming life threatening. Or, they can go ahead and administer the medication and monitor the baby closely so that they can deliver it if they sense it is in any distress."

Hyde blinked a few times to make sure he was still awake and was not in the middle of some karmic nightmare. "But if they deliver the baby now… would it be OK? I mean it's still early and…"

"It's a bit earlier than they would normally like. But there is still a good chance that it will be fine." Kitty told him in as soothing a voice as she could manage. "But Steven…"

"What?" he questioned. To him, it sounded like the best option.

"Steven, the delivery can be very traumatic on the body and in Jackie's weakened state…" Kitty trailed off, at a loss as to how to break this to him. "Steven, there is a chance that a natural delivery could be too much pressure on her heart and that a caesarean could put her at risk of further infections so I… she might not make it if we go ahead and deliver the baby." Hyde stood up and flinched back from her touch.

"So you're telling me that I can either let them deliver the baby and risk Jackie die, or not let them deliver and let the baby die?" Hyde was hysterical and searching Red and Kitty's eyes for them to tell him he had heard it wrong. That he wasn't going to have to let someone he loved die.

Kitty stepped towards him slowly. "Steven, Jackie and the baby could both come out of this fine. There's no reason to believe that they can't deliver the baby and then fight the infection before any more damage is done. We just want to make sure that you are aware of the risks before we do anything."

Hyde shook his head and was silent for a moment before telling them, "Fix it." Kitty looked at Red, unsure of what to say. "Just fix it." Hyde turned and sped out of the room before either could stop him. What the hell was he supposed to do?

----------

CAFETERIA

Eric, Donna, Bob, Laurie and Fez all sat around a tiny table in the near-deserted cafeteria.

Since Fez had joined them shortly before, he had resigned himself to silence and said nothing to any of them once had had been informed on the details. Eric looked at the fractured group. This was wrong. "Anybody call Kelso?"

"I left a message with Brooke." Donna answered, speaking for the first time in almost ten minutes. "She said she'd try and reach him at work." Eric barely nodded because he was already back to acting out in his head every possible scenario of what could happen. None of them really had a happy ending, but then again, he wasn't exactly the optimist of the group. That role belonged to…

"Jackie." Laurie stated. "How the hell does something like this happen to Jackie? I mean. She's the only one of you that I can stand."

"Didn't she, like beat the crap out of you once?" Eric asked with a smile.

Laurie rolled her eyes. "Please that was nothing. Just a little tiff." Eric snorted and Laurie decided that she much preferred silence.

"Jackie does have something of a bad side though." Donna said with a laugh. "I mean, how many times has she kicked Hyde in the shins with her boots?" The group all shared a small laugh.

"Yeah, or smack Kelso over the head." Eric added.

"Or get into girl-on-girl fights with Donna?" Fez said. He was more eager to speak now that they were moving away from the seriousness of the moment.

"Oh yeah…" Eric and Bob both said with perverted sighs.

"Ew, Dad!" Donna protested at the thought of her dad getting turned on by her fighting.

Bob raised his hands in defense. "What? Jackie's hot." Bob stated and Donna shuddered.

Eric clicked his fingers at Donna. "Hey, do you remember the time we were looking for your ring on the water tower and Jackie just let me fall instead of helping me up because-"

"_He touched Peetos!"_ Donna and Fez mimicked and the whole group began laughing hysterically as they pictured Jackie spurting out something like that.

"There's just something about getting close to Jackie and falling off of the water tower. I mean, think about it. Kelso starts dating her and he falls of the water tower every week. Hyde starts dating her and he falls off the water tower."

"To be fair, Donna did push him." Fez interrupted and Donna lowered her head in embarrassment.

Eric nodded. "True enough. But then I stand next to her on the water tower for the first time, and I fall off for the first time."

Fez laughed. "Yes, it is a good thing I never dated Jackie. My balls would turn black and blue."

"Fez, there are so many things wrong with the thought of you and Jackie dating that I don't even know where to start." Donna said chuckling but her bemusement began to cease and she looked at the group of people surrounding her. "Guys, should we be acting like this? Joking, laughing, reminiscing like she's-"

"But she's not." Eric told her. "Jackie is fine so we can go on and on about the curse of Miss Burkhart for many years to come. OK?" This wasn't so much of a question as a case of daring her to say otherwise.

"OK." The four people said quietly.

Bob spoke up. "Hey, I've got a good Jackie story. It was a little while after she moved in with me and Donna and uh, I was looking for some M&M's down the side of the couch. Anyway, Jackie walked in and went on and one about how gross it was for me to be looking for food in the furniture, which as all of you know was like telling me to suddenly start straightening my hair. But I digress, the next day, I was making breakfast when I opened the refrigerator door and saw a little decorative bowl lying there. So I took it out and opened the bowl and you know what I saw?"

"What?" the group chorused, so enraptured by this story.

"A bowl full of M&M's." Bob choked out. "And there was a note saying 'Eating is the only cause I seem to be able to help with in this household, so enjoy." Everybody laughed, especially Donna as she remembered all the teasing she and her dad had received from Jackie while eating dinner. "But of course, when I came home that night, the bowl was empty." Bob looked to his right, glaring.

"Well, don't act so surprised!" Fez told him.

Laurie cleared her throat. "You know, I have a pretty good Jackie story too."

"Oh God." Eric groaned but Laurie frogged him in the shoulder.

"Shut it, or I will eat you." Eric gulped as he fully believed she would follow through on her threat. "As I was saying, a few months ago Jackie and I went to pick out some baby clothes and we found this really cute dress but it was way too expensive for either of us to buy. So, Jackie tells me to wait in the shop for a few minutes and she'll be back with the answer. Little do I realize that Baby Bloomers is right around the corner from Grooves and that she just went to Hyde to get the money. So later on, I asked her how he gave her it so quickly and she told me that she went into the store, dragged him out into the back alley and gave him a blo-"

"OK, Laurie. Enough sharing." Eric drawled loudly. "I don't need to be made aware of the sexual favours Jackie gives Hyde in return for cash."

Bob interrupted. "Yeah, I thought that you were the hooker of the gang."

"Well, for $50 I can be." Laurie said with a wink in his direction. Bob gulped while Fez whipped out his wallet and began counting his change.

----------

JACKIE'S ROOM

How is it possible to be afraid of somebody who isn't even awake?

Hyde had asked himself this question so many times since first stepping foot into her room, that he was beginning to think it was as profound as 'What is the meaning of life?'

Jackie's BP had dropped earlier but had now returned to a steady 110/85 and she was now sleeping peacefully. Hyde thanked God that she hadn't gone through any life-threatening moments. Yet.

He only had short time before a decision had to be made. No, that wasn't true; the decision had already been made. Hyde just hadn't found the courage to announce it. If he didn't let them induce, both Jackie and the baby would probably die. But if he did, both Jackie and the baby would not necessarily live. So what was his decision resting on? A leap of faith. Somehow, the words; Steven Hyde and leap of faith didn't seem to match. Steven Hyde and cynicism. Steven Hyde and cruelty. Now they had a bit more of a rhyme to them and at that moment, he would give anything to be able to be cynical about this current situation.

But…he needed Jackie. Everybody knew it and everybody had made it their business not to point it out to him. She was demanding, she was persistent, she was annoying as hell and he could very easily find somebody else who asked nothing of him and got nothing from him, yet! He still kept coming back for more when it came to this girl. And why? Because he needed this girl. So the decision was made.

Steven Hyde was going to take a leap of faith.

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OPERATING ROOM

Jackie had been put under anesthesia at the request of the attending OB doctor and they were getting ready to make the incision. After little question, Hyde was permitted to sit with Jackie while the C-section took place and that explained why he was currently sitting in a chair next to her while an oxygen mask covered her mouth.

"How long will this take?" he asked the nurse.

"Just a few minutes." Hyde nodded and resumed running his left hand across the top of her head. Normally, Hyde wouldn't be caught dead showing such open affectionate moments but he had been missing her so much over the last 12 hours that he was willing to do anything just to feel her again. And as a plus, he was going to be a father in a few minutes. That's always going to give a guy a high. But it wasn't going to be all celebration. The doctors had told him beforehand that they would have to keep the baby under close observation for the next 72 hours and that Jackie had quite a long road ahead of her. The trauma of delivering a baby means that she will take longer than the average patient would to fight off this infection but Hyde wasn't too worried. After all, since when had this woman stepped down from a battle.

As the doctors stepped up to the operating table, Hyde was surer than ever that he was ready for this now. For the surgery, for parenthood and for whatever else he would come up against. And it looked like he was about to find out.

"Scalpel."

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"Knife."

Hyde was snapped out of his flashback by the incessantly demanding voice that seemed to be more determined than ever to send him into premature deafness.

"Knife." Hyde stated, handing it over to her. He was fixated as she sliced the carving knife through the thick layers of cream, jam, coconut and M&M's. The last one was really just a last-minute Fezzian addition.

Hyde looked around for the guest of honour and practically soaked his hair with beer when he flew out of his seat upon seeing his 1 year old son moments away from stabbing his grandfather in the ankle with a pair of scissors. Hyde quickly scooped him into his arms and came face to face with a miniature version of the scowl it had taken Hyde many Zen lessons to perfect.

"Bad Da!" he yelled while smacking his dad on the chest. Hyde groaned when he realized he had come across yet another person who could get away with hitting him.

"You know, your mom is like 20ft away. Wanna let her know what you were up to?" Hyde asked him tauntingly. For a moment, the tiny guy did nothing but then wrapped his arms around his daddy's neck and hugged him. "Can't say I blame you." Hyde muttered as he looked down at his son who was minutes away from falling asleep. And if that happened, a hug was not going to spare Hyde from Jackie's wrath.

All around, people Hyde had never met were milling around his back garden and seemed to be taking it upon themselves to help themselves to whatever they wanted from his beer supply. _Leave it to a birthday party for a one year old to give me a social life._

Regardless of his dwindling supply, Hyde wasn't about to complain about having this party because it was the reward for one of the most hellish years of his life. The caesarean had went smoothly and the baby suffered no complications but the procedure had done Jackie more damage than anybody had anticipated. After they had ensured all the afterbirth was delivered and that her uterus was in solid condition, her heart rate slowed to a dangerously low level and Hyde spent the next few hours sitting in a nursery with a little boy who did nothing but sleep, waiting for the slightest bit of news. But then things of course got better and Jackie was eventually getting back to full strength. The medication hadn't been the most pleasant of substances and it hadn't had the most pleasant effects. As much as it was behind them all now, Hyde faced a daily reminder of one of the most horrific moments of his life – the day his son was named. Hyde loved the name Tony when it was suggested because it reminded him of an old 'acquaintance' of his from the alleys he had frequented often in the past. However, Hyde was not so jazzed to later find out that it was only suggested in the first place because Tony had began breastfeeding for the first time when Jackie had requested Donna turn the TV station to the Tony Awards. Apparently it had been a sign for Jackie but it was a sign that Hyde had worked overtime expelling from her mind. Having his son named after… **that** was something he simply couldn't live with and he vowed to change the meaning behind the name if it was the last thing he did.

In the midst of his wandering, Hyde had neglected to notice that most of the guests were on the road to Slower Reflexes so he took the opportunity to find some much needed alone time with Jackie. She however, seemed to be the only one missing from this scene.

"Forman, have you seen Jackie?" Hyde asked. Eric was currently holding Donna's face away from his as she lay fast asleep in a drunken haze.

"I think she's putting Tony down."

Hyde nodded and smiled menacingly at the sight of his two oldest friends. "You know, you two are just so damn adorable that I have to take a picture." Satisfied at capturing their embarrassing pose on film, Hyde walked across the patio and into the kitchen of the house he had kept secret from Jackie for months. The plan had been to bring her home to it after the baby had been born when she asked to go home, but that didn't work out so he settled for just surprising her with it one night after they walked back from having dinner. She had been stunned and he had been horny; but it seemed like back then he was always horny since they found out all too bluntly that they had to refrain from having sex for a few weeks after the baby had been born. But if Hyde had known that buying a house would recharge Jackie's batteries, he would have committed a long time ago.

And speaking of commitment…

"Hey Jackie, you got a second?" Jackie looked up from one of her boys to see her other boy standing nervously in the doorway.

"Sure." Jackie looked at him questioningly and followed him when he led her to the living room couch. Kitty sat passed out behind the stairs and Hyde couldn't believe the irony of their current situation. "Steven, you wanted to talk?" Suddenly her face turned stormy. "Wait, is just you trying to get me drunk enough so that I'll do it with you on the couch? Because that's how we broke the last one." Jackie said with irritation but she soon wished she hadn't said it as Hyde gave a proud grin. "God, Steven. We get it. You're great in bed. Really great actually." Jackie said as she thought back.

Hyde smiled. "Not so bad yourself." Clearing his throat, Hyde spoke again. "You and I seem to have a thing for couches, don't we?"

Jackie picked up her glass and took a sip. "Of you are referring to a certain summer expedition from my teenage years, then I am going to have to act like a lady and ignore you." Jackie looked at him with the most conservative expression he could ever remember but she then proceeded to stick out her tongue and flop back onto the couch with a smile. "But, if you wanna revisit old times…" she suggested.

Hyde groaned. He knew if he took her up on this, then he would lose his nerve. "In a minute, babe. There's something I need to ask you."

Jackie sat up and smoothed down her skirt. "OK. Ask ahead."

Hyde took a deep breath. "I told you once how I wasn't ready to get married yet. But I am now." Putting a hand in his pocket, Hyde continued, "Nothing is holding us back anymore. No Kelso. No trips to Vegas. No dads suddenly popping back into our lives." Hyde pulled out the small case from his pocket and opened it. Jackie's stunned gasp gave him a bit more confidence.

"Is that a…?"

"Uh uh."

"And are you…?"

"Uh uh."

Jackie smiled.

"So, can I…?"

Hyde smiled.

"Uh uh."

Hyde placed the ring on her finger but had to ask.

"So are we…?"

Jackie smiled again.

"Uh uh."

Hyde smiled again.

"Well, this doesn't suck." Just then the doorbell rang. The pair sighed and got up to open the door. "Red." Hyde stated."

"Jackie. Steven." Red smiled at the pair. "I think you have something of mine." Red said, pointing to his wife.

As soon as Red was gone, Hyde shut the door and said, "I hate doorbells."

**The End.**

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**A/N: **Wow, it's over. You've all been great, everyone of you. I don't get overly-sentimental but if you all have enjoyed reading this half as much as I have enjoyed writing it, then I'm a happy guy lol. I said at the beginning that this was designed to show us what could have been and I really hope I did it justice for all of you. So how do I sign off on this one? Well, I guess I could always ask for a review.

Stay safe and I'll be back with more stories very soon. :)


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